The 1978–79 season was Arsenal Football Club's 53rd consecutive season in the Football League First Division. The club finished seventh in the league but won the 1978-79 FA Cup. It was their second of three consecutive FA Cup finals under manager Terry Neill. Known as the "Five Minute Final," Arsenal went 2-0 up until the 85th minute, before Manchester United brought it to a tie. Alan Sunderland scored the winning goal for Arsenal and Arsenal won the FA Cup 3-2.
Arsenal were rather less successful in other cup competitions, going out to Rotherham United in the second round in the League Cup. The team had qualified for the UEFA Cup by finishing fifth the previous season, but went out in the third round to Red Star Belgrade.
In the transfer market, Neill brought in Brian Talbot from Ipswich Town halfway through the season to strengthen Arsenal's midfield, especially with a tough cup run. Paul Barron was brought in as the understudy to goalkeeper Pat Jennings at the beginning of the season.[1]
Arsenal had their first trophy since 1971, when they won the FA Cup final against Manchester United. Terry Neill had what was to be his only trophy as manager,[2] and became the fifth Arsenal manager to win the FA Cup.
Arsenal had earned a place in the UEFA Cup with a fifth-place finish in the 1977-78 Football League. They faced Lokomotiv Leipzig, Hajduk Split (a game which brought Liam Brady's first goal in Europe), and Red Star Belgrade. Arsenal were eliminated by Red Star Belgrade in the third round of the competition. The Serbian side won 2-1 on aggregate, and the crucial last minute goal was scored by Dusan Savic at Highbury.[3][4] In the League Cup, Arsenal went out early, losing 3-1 to Rotherham United.
For a while Arsenal had flirted with the notion of winning the league as they sat in the top four by Christmas, but the marathon battle with Sheffield Wednesday in January 1979 had put all the focus on the FA Cup, and league results had been at best average in the second half of the season.[5]
However, the focus on the FA Cup paid dividends as Arsenal reached the "Five Minute Final." Arsenal's toughest opponent in the run up had been Third Division side managed by Jack Charlton, Sheffield United. The tie went to five matches in sixteen days. Arsenal won the fourth replay 2-0.[6][7] After the first replay, Arsenal bought Brian Talbot from Ipswich for ₤400,000, an essential player in the team that had beat Arsenal in the FA Cup final the previous year. Talbot made his FA Cup debut in a 2-0 defeat of Notts Country before Arsenal faced Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest in the fifth round. Arsenal beat Forest 1-0 in a game where Forest hit the woodwork three times. It was Forest's first home defeat in 52 matches. Arsenal then beat Southampton in a replay, though lost Brady to injury thirty minutes from the end. Arsenal next faced Wolves under new manager John Barnwell in the semifinal. Alan Sunderland scored the second goal against his former club.[4][5]
Arsenal faced Manchester United the FA Cup final. United had beaten the world-class Liverpool in the semifinal and Arsenal had played 9 games in 34 days (about 1 in every 4 days) in the run up to the final.[5] Arsenal scored twice through Sunderland and Talbot. However, with five minutes remaining in the match, United recovered with goals from Gordon McQueen and Sammy McIlroy. From the second kick-off, Brady booted a pass to Graham Rix who crossed to the far post for Sunderland. United goalkeeper Gary Bailey misjudged the cross and Sunderland scored. Arsenal won the final, 3-2, with three goals of the five goals scored in the last five minutes of the match.[4][5][8] Arsenal qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup with the victory.
After the season, Brady announced that he would leave the club when his contract ran out in 1980, hoping for a new challenge in European football.[4]Malcolm Macdonald announced his retirement in August 1979 at just 29 years old. [9][10]
Squadedit
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
^. Arsenal. Archived from the original on 7 February 2023. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
^Mason, Peter (31 July 2022). . The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
^. FK Crvena Zvezda (in Bosnian). 3 September 2020. Archived from the original on 5 November 2023.
^ abcdSoar, Phil; Tyler, Martin (1995). Arsenal: Official History. London: Hamlyn. pp. 194–197. ISBN0600588262.
^ abcdAtwood, Tony (18 March 2014). . The History of Arsenal. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
^Pye, Steven (23 September 2023). . The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 November 2023.
^. The 1888 Letter. 12 January 2019. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023.
^Brodkin, Jon (19 May 2005). . The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 November 2023. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
^Soar, Phil (2003). The official illustrerad history of Arsenal. Hamlyn. p. 134.
^. Arsenal. Archived from the original on 5 November 2023.
^. 11 vs 11. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023.
^. The Arsenal History. 1 April 2022. Archived from the original on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
External linksedit
Arsenal 1978–79 on statto.com
December 01, 2023
1978, arsenal, season, 1978, season, arsenal, football, club, 53rd, consecutive, season, football, league, first, division, club, finished, seventh, league, 1978, their, second, three, consecutive, finals, under, manager, terry, neill, known, five, minute, fin. The 1978 79 season was Arsenal Football Club s 53rd consecutive season in the Football League First Division The club finished seventh in the league but won the 1978 79 FA Cup It was their second of three consecutive FA Cup finals under manager Terry Neill Known as the Five Minute Final Arsenal went 2 0 up until the 85th minute before Manchester United brought it to a tie Alan Sunderland scored the winning goal for Arsenal and Arsenal won the FA Cup 3 2 Arsenal F C 1978 79 seasonChairmanDenis Hill WoodManagerTerry NeillFirst Division7thFA CupWinnersLeague CupSecond roundUEFA CupThird roundTop goalscorerLeague Frank Stapleton 17 All Frank Stapleton 28 Home coloursAway colours 1977 781979 80 Arsenal were rather less successful in other cup competitions going out to Rotherham United in the second round in the League Cup The team had qualified for the UEFA Cup by finishing fifth the previous season but went out in the third round to Red Star Belgrade In the transfer market Neill brought in Brian Talbot from Ipswich Town halfway through the season to strengthen Arsenal s midfield especially with a tough cup run Paul Barron was brought in as the understudy to goalkeeper Pat Jennings at the beginning of the season 1 Contents 1 Season summary 2 Squad 3 Results 3 1 First Division 3 2 Football League Cup 3 3 FA Cup 3 4 UEFA Cup 4 Top scorers 4 1 First Division 5 References 6 External linksSeason summary editArsenal had their first trophy since 1971 when they won the FA Cup final against Manchester United Terry Neill had what was to be his only trophy as manager 2 and became the fifth Arsenal manager to win the FA Cup Arsenal had earned a place in the UEFA Cup with a fifth place finish in the 1977 78 Football League They faced Lokomotiv Leipzig Hajduk Split a game which brought Liam Brady s first goal in Europe and Red Star Belgrade Arsenal were eliminated by Red Star Belgrade in the third round of the competition The Serbian side won 2 1 on aggregate and the crucial last minute goal was scored by Dusan Savic at Highbury 3 4 In the League Cup Arsenal went out early losing 3 1 to Rotherham United For a while Arsenal had flirted with the notion of winning the league as they sat in the top four by Christmas but the marathon battle with Sheffield Wednesday in January 1979 had put all the focus on the FA Cup and league results had been at best average in the second half of the season 5 However the focus on the FA Cup paid dividends as Arsenal reached the Five Minute Final Arsenal s toughest opponent in the run up had been Third Division side managed by Jack Charlton Sheffield United The tie went to five matches in sixteen days Arsenal won the fourth replay 2 0 6 7 After the first replay Arsenal bought Brian Talbot from Ipswich for 400 000 an essential player in the team that had beat Arsenal in the FA Cup final the previous year Talbot made his FA Cup debut in a 2 0 defeat of Notts Country before Arsenal faced Brian Clough s Nottingham Forest in the fifth round Arsenal beat Forest 1 0 in a game where Forest hit the woodwork three times It was Forest s first home defeat in 52 matches Arsenal then beat Southampton in a replay though lost Brady to injury thirty minutes from the end Arsenal next faced Wolves under new manager John Barnwell in the semifinal Alan Sunderland scored the second goal against his former club 4 5 Arsenal faced Manchester United the FA Cup final United had beaten the world class Liverpool in the semifinal and Arsenal had played 9 games in 34 days about 1 in every 4 days in the run up to the final 5 Arsenal scored twice through Sunderland and Talbot However with five minutes remaining in the match United recovered with goals from Gordon McQueen and Sammy McIlroy From the second kick off Brady booted a pass to Graham Rix who crossed to the far post for Sunderland United goalkeeper Gary Bailey misjudged the cross and Sunderland scored Arsenal won the final 3 2 with three goals of the five goals scored in the last five minutes of the match 4 5 8 Arsenal qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners Cup with the victory After the season Brady announced that he would leave the club when his contract ran out in 1980 hoping for a new challenge in European football 4 Malcolm Macdonald announced his retirement in August 1979 at just 29 years old 9 10 Squad editNote Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules Players may hold more than one non FIFA nationality No Pos Nation Player GK nbsp NIR Pat Jennings DF nbsp NIR Pat Rice DF nbsp NIR Sammy Nelson MF nbsp ENG Brian Talbot DF nbsp IRL David O Leary DF nbsp SCO Willie Young MF nbsp IRL Liam Brady FW nbsp ENG Alan Sunderland FW nbsp IRL Frank Stapleton MF nbsp ENG David Price MF nbsp ENG Graham Rix No Pos Nation Player MF nbsp ENG Steve Walford DF nbsp ENG Steve Gatting DF nbsp IRL John Devine MF nbsp ENG Mark Heeley FW nbsp ENG Malcolm Macdonald GK nbsp ENG Paul Barron MF nbsp NIR Jim Harvey DF nbsp ENG Kevin Stead FW nbsp ENG Paul Vaessen DF nbsp ENG Steve Brignall FW nbsp AUS John Kosmina MF nbsp ENG Brian McDermott 11 Results editFirst Division edit Main article 1978 79 Football League First Division Pos Teamvte Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation5 Leeds United 42 18 14 10 70 52 18 50 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round6 Ipswich Town 42 20 9 13 63 49 14 497 Arsenal 42 17 14 11 61 48 13 48 Qualification for the European Cup Winners Cup first round a 8 Aston Villa 42 15 16 11 59 49 10 469 Manchester United 42 15 15 12 60 63 3 45Source World FootballRules for classification 1 Points 2 Goal difference 3 Goals scoredNotes Arsenal qualified for the European Cup Winners Cup first round as the 1978 79 FA Cup winners Arsenal v Leeds United 19 August 1978 1Arsenal2 2Leeds UnitedLondonStadium Highbury Manchester City v Arsenal 22 August 1978 2Manchester City1 1ArsenalManchesterStadium Maine Road Everton v Arsenal 26 August 1978 3Everton1 0ArsenalLiverpoolStadium Goodison Park Arsenal v Queen s Park Rangers 2 September 1978 4Arsenal5 1Queen s Park RangersLondonStadium Highbury Nottingham Forest v Arsenal 9 September 1978 5Nottingham Forest2 1ArsenalNottinghamStadium City Ground Arsenal v Bolton Wanderers 16 September 1978 6Arsenal1 0Bolton WanderersLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Manchester United 23 September 1978 7Arsenal1 1Manchester UnitedLondonStadium Highbury Middlesbrough v Arsenal 30 September 1978 8Middlesbrough2 3ArsenalMiddlesbroughStadium Ayresome Park Arsenal v Aston Villa 7 October 1978 9Arsenal1 1Aston VillaLondonStadium Highbury Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal 14 October 1978 10Wolverhampton Wanderers1 0ArsenalWolverhamptonStadium Molineux Arsenal v Southampton 21 October 1978 11Arsenal1 0SouthamptonLondonStadium Highbury Bristol City v Arsenal 28 October 1978 12Bristol City1 3ArsenalBristolStadium Ashton Gate Arsenal v Ipswich Town 4 November 1978 13Arsenal4 1Ipswich TownLondonStadium Highbury Leeds United v Arsenal 11 November 1978 14Leeds United0 1ArsenalLeedsStadium Elland Road Arsenal v Everton 18 November 1978 15Arsenal2 2EvertonLondonStadium Highbury Coventry City v Arsenal 25 November 1978 16Coventry City1 1ArsenalCoventryStadium Highfield Road Arsenal v Liverpool 2 December 1978 17Arsenal1 0LiverpoolLondonStadium Highbury Norwich City v Arsenal 9 December 1978 18Norwich City0 0ArsenalNorwichStadium Carrow Road Arsenal v Derby County 16 December 1978 19Arsenal2 0Derby CountyLondonStadium Highbury Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal 23 December 1978 20Tottenham Hotspur0 5ArsenalLondonStadium White Hart Lane Arsenal v West Bromwich Albion 26 December 1978 21Arsenal1 2West Bromwich AlbionLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Birmingham City 30 December 1978 22Arsenal3 1Birmingham CityLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Nottingham Forest 13 January 1979 23Arsenal2 1Nottingham ForestLondonStadium Highbury Manchester United v Arsenal 3 February 1979 24Manchester United0 2ArsenalManchesterStadium Old Trafford Arsenal v Middlesbrough 10 February 1979 25Arsenal0 0MiddlesbroughLondonStadium Highbury Queen s Park Rangers v Arsenal 13 February 1979 26Queen s Park Rangers1 2ArsenalLondonStadium Loftus Road Arsenal v Wolverhampton Wanderers 24 February 1979 27Arsenal0 1Wolverhampton WanderersLondonStadium Highbury Southampton v Arsenal 3 March 1979 28Southampton2 0ArsenalSouthamptonStadium The Dell Arsenal v Bristol City 10 March 1979 29Arsenal2 0Bristol CityLondonStadium Highbury Ipswich Town v Arsenal 17 March 1979 30Ipswich Town2 0ArsenalIpswich TownStadium Portman Road Arsenal v Manchester City 24 March 1979 31Arsenal1 1Manchester CityLondonStadium Highbury Bolton Wanderers v Arsenal 26 March 1979 32Bolton Wanderers4 2ArsenalBoltonStadium Burnden Park Arsenal v Coventry City 3 April 1979 33Arsenal1 1Coventry CityLondonStadium Highbury Liverpool v Arsenal 7 April 1979 34Liverpool3 0ArsenalLiverpoolStadium Anfield Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur 10 April 1979 35Arsenal1 0Tottenham HotspurLondonStadium Highbury West Bromwich Albion v Arsenal 14 April 1979 36West Bromwich Albion1 1ArsenalWest BromwichStadium The Hawthorns Arsenal v Chelsea 16 April 1979 37Arsenal5 2ChelseaLondonStadium Highbury Derby County v Arsenal 21 April 1979 38Derby County2 0ArsenalDerbyStadium Baseball Ground Aston Villa v Arsenal 25 April 1979 39Aston Villa5 1ArsenalBirminghamStadium Villa Park Arsenal v Norwich City 28 April 1979 40Arsenal1 1Norwich CityLondonStadium Highbury Birmingham City v Arsenal 5 May 1979 41Birmingham City0 0ArsenalBirminghamStadium St Andrew s Chelsea v Arsenal 19 May 1979 42Chelsea1 1ArsenalLondonStadium Stamford Bridge Football League Cup edit Main article 1978 79 Football League Cup Rotherham United v Arsenal 29 August 1978 Second roundRotherham United3 1ArsenalRotherhamStadium Millmoor FA Cup edit Main article 1978 79 FA Cup Arsenal entered the FA Cup in the third round proper in which they were drawn to face Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday v Arsenal 6 January 1979 Third roundSheffield Wednesday1 1ArsenalSheffieldJohnson Sunderland Stadium Hillsborough Stadium Arsenal v Sheffield Wednesday 9 January 1979 Third round replayArsenal1 1Sheffield WednesdayLondonBrady Wylde Stadium Highbury Sheffield Wednesday v Arsenal 15 January 1979 Third round 2nd replaySheffield Wednesday2 2 aet ArsenalLeicesterHornsby 2 1 pen BradySunderland Stadium Filbert Street Arsenal v Sheffield Wednesday 17 January 1979 Third round 3rd replayArsenal3 3 aet Sheffield WednesdayLeicesterStapleton 2 Young RushburyLoweyHornsby pen Stadium Filbert Street Sheffield Wednesday v Arsenal 22 January 1979 Third round 4th replaySheffield Wednesday0 2ArsenalLeicesterGattingStapleton Stadium Filbert Street Arsenal v Notts County 27 January 1979 Fourth roundArsenal2 0Notts CountyLondonTalbotYoung Stadium Highbury Nottingham Forest v Arsenal 26 February 1979 Fifth roundNottingham Forest0 1ArsenalNottinghamStapleton nbsp 78 Stadium City Ground Southampton v Arsenal 19 March 1979 Sixth roundSouthampton1 1ArsenalSouthamptonHayes Price Stadium The Dell Arsenal v Southampton 21 March 1979 Sixth round replayArsenal2 0SouthamptonLondonSunderland nbsp 32 75 Stadium Highbury Arsenal v Wolverhampton Wanderers 28 April 1979 Semi FinalArsenal2 0Wolverhampton WanderersBirminghamStapleton nbsp 50 Sunderland nbsp 79 Stadium Villa Park Arsenal v Manchester United 12 May 1979 FinalArsenal3 2Manchester UnitedLondonTalbot nbsp 12 Stapleton nbsp 43 Sunderland nbsp 89 McQueen nbsp 86 McIlroy nbsp 88 Stadium Wembley Stadium Attendance 100 000 UEFA Cup edit Main article 1978 79 UEFA Cup Arsenal nbsp v nbsp Lokomotive Leipzig 13 September 1978 First round 1st Leg Arsenal nbsp 3 0 nbsp Lokomotive LeipzigLondonStadium Highbury Lokomotive Leipzig nbsp v nbsp Arsenal 27 September 1978 First round 2nd Leg Lokomotive Leipzig nbsp 1 4 1 7 agg nbsp ArsenalLeipzigStadium Bruno Plache Stadion Hajduk Split nbsp v nbsp Arsenal 19 October 1978 Second round 1st Leg Hajduk Split nbsp 2 1 nbsp ArsenalSplitStadium Plinara Stadion Arsenal nbsp v nbsp Hajduk Split 1 November 1978 Second round 2nd Leg Arsenal nbsp 1 0 2 2 agg nbsp Hajduk SplitLondonStadium Highbury Red Star Belgrade nbsp v nbsp Arsenal 22 November 1978 Third Round 1st Leg Red Star Belgrade nbsp 1 0 nbsp ArsenalBelgradeStadium Red Star Stadium Arsenal nbsp v nbsp Red Star Belgrade 6 December 1978 Third Round 2nd Leg Arsenal nbsp 1 1 1 2 agg nbsp Red Star BelgradeLondonStadium HighburyTop scorers editFirst Division edit nbsp Frank Stapleton 17 nbsp Liam Brady 13 nbsp Alan Sunderland 9 12 References edit Paul Barron Arsenal Archived from the original on 7 February 2023 Retrieved 5 November 2023 Mason Peter 31 July 2022 Terry Neill obituary The Guardian Archived from the original on 10 October 2023 Retrieved 5 November 2023 Iz arhive Kako smo bacili Arsenal na kolena FK Crvena Zvezda in Bosnian 3 September 2020 Archived from the original on 5 November 2023 a b c d Soar Phil Tyler Martin 1995 Arsenal Official History London Hamlyn pp 194 197 ISBN 0600588262 a b c d Atwood Tony 18 March 2014 How Arsenal won the FA Cup in 1979 The History of Arsenal Archived from the original on 2 July 2022 Retrieved 5 November 2023 Pye Steven 23 September 2023 When Arsenal won the FA Cup after playing four replays in the same round The Guardian Archived from the original on 3 November 2023 Sheffield Wednesday v Arsenal 1979 FA Cup The 1888 Letter 12 January 2019 Archived from the original on 8 October 2023 Brodkin Jon 19 May 2005 Five minutes that will live forever The Guardian Archived from the original on 3 November 2023 Retrieved 5 November 2023 Soar Phil 2003 The official illustrerad history of Arsenal Hamlyn p 134 Malcom Macdonald Arsenal Archived from the original on 5 November 2023 All Arsenal players 1979 11 vs 11 Archived from the original on 19 October 2023 Arsenal First Team Line ups The Arsenal History 1 April 2022 Archived from the original on 28 October 2023 Retrieved 1 April 2022 External links editArsenal 1978 79 on statto com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1978 79 Arsenal F C season amp oldid 1183555621, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
