These is gathered for All sporters to know what Arsenal is up too.According to Wikipedia.Arsenal had started the 1933–34season solidly, but in January 1934 Herbert Chapman died suddenly frompneumonia. Despite this, undercaretaker managerJoe Shaw Arsenal retained the title that season; Hulme and James were both out with injury for a large portion, and so Arsenal were not the attacking side they had been the previous season, scoring only 75 in the League, compared with 118 in 1932–33.[32]
George Allison (who had formerly been a director of the club) took over the job of team manager in summer 1934 and soon signed new blood for the side, including wing halves Jack Craystonand Wilf Copping (whose signings had been initiated by Chapman), and strikerTed Drake.[40] With these new signings, Allison oversaw the completion of a hat-trick of League titles in 1934–35, and Arsenal were back to their attacking best; Drake scored a club record 42 league goals that season and Arsenal racked up a series of heavily one-sided scorelines reminiscent of the 1930–31 season (including 7–0 v.Wolves, 8–1v.Liverpool, and 8–0 twice, v.Leicester City and v.Middlesbrough).[45] Such was Arsenal's strength that in November 1934, seven players that started for theEngland side that beat World ChampionsItaly 3–2 (in the so-called "Battle of Highbury") were on Arsenal's books, a record number of players from a single club, which still stands today.[c]
Arsenal's ongoing success attracted larger and larger crowds. Arsenal's home, Highbury, was completely redeveloped, with Leitch's stands from 1913 demolished and replaced with modern Art Deco stands, parts of which remain to this day — the façade of the East Stand is now a Grade II listed building,[47] and both façades have been retained as part of the modern-day redevelopment of Highbury into anapartment complex. Meanwhile, the North Bank and Clock End terraces had roofs installed. The new stadium saw its largest attendance, 73,295, on 9 March 1935 for a match against Sunderland.[48]
Arsenal's dominance of the decade was sealed with a second FA Cup in 1935–36, winning 1–0 against Sheffield United with a goal from Drake. Arsenal faded in the League somewhat after the 1934–35 title, and were weakened by the retirement of Alex James and the club's inability to replace him, as well as long-term injuries to several other key players such as Herbie Roberts and Joe Hulme. Nevertheless, they won a fifth League title in 1937–38, pipping Wolveson the final day of the season, to cap off a highly successful decade.
The Second World War (1939–45)
Soon after the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, all first-class football in Britain was suspended, and the1939–40 Football League season annulled. Highbury was requisitioned as an ARP station, with a barrage balloonoperating behind the Clock End. Duringthe Blitz, a bomb fell on the North Bank, destroying the roof and setting fire to the scrap that was being stored on the terrace. With Highbury closed, Arsenal instead played their home matches atWhite Hart Lane, home of their rivals Tottenham Hotspur.[49] Wartime matches do not count in official statistics; competitions were played on a regional basis and teams often did not complete a full season; many footballers served in the armed forces as trainers or instructors and were away from their clubs for long periods of time, so they would often star as "guests" at other clubs. Arsenal won the Football League War Cup South in 1942–43 and the London or Southern league titles in1939–40, 1941–42 and 1942–43.[50]Participation in the London League led to their expulsion from The Football League in 1941 along with 14 other clubs; it was not until April 1942 when they were readmitted after expressing regret and paying a £10 fine.[51]
In November 1945, with league competition still suspended, Arsenal were one of the teams that played aDynamo Moscow side touring the UK. With many players still serving abroad in the armed forces, Arsenal were severely depleted and used six guest players, including Stanley Matthews andStan Mortensen, which led Dynamo to declare they were playing an England XI,[52] although three of the side were actually Welsh. In any case, Dynamo themselves had Vsevolod Bobrov on loan from CDKA Moscow.[53] The match, at White Hart Lane, kicked off in thick fog and the slick and technically proficient Dynamo won 4–3, after Arsenal had led 3–1 at half-time.
Though the score is generally agreed upon, after that accounts of the match diverge; even the identity of the goalscorers is disputed.[d] English reports alleged Dynamo fielded twelve players at one point, and tried to pressurise the referee into abandoning the match when they had been behind; in turn, the Soviets accused Arsenal of persistent foul play and even alleged George Allison had bet money on the result (a claim that was later retracted).[55] The acrimony after the match was such that it inspired George Orwell to write his 1945 essay The Sporting Spirit, in which he famously opined on thenature of sport, namely that in his view "it is war minus the shooting".[56] With the fog obscuring much of the action, not to mention the language barriers and the early-Cold War mutual suspicion between both sides, it is unlikely any reliable account of the match will emerge.
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