In the transfer business, Arsenal lost first-team regular Liam Brady to Juventus. Arsenal signed 19-year-old Clive Allen from Queens Park Rangers as a forward for £1.25 million, a club transfer record. However, Allen failed to make a competitive match appearance for the club and was instead moved-on to Crystal Palace in a swap deal for Kenny Sanson. Peter Nicholas also joined the club in March.
Frank Stapleton was Arsenal's top scorer in both the league and in all competitions. He left Arsenal for Manchester United at the end of the season.
Throughout the season, Arsenal went undefeated at Highbury in the League.
After the gruelling and heart breaking 70-match season in 1979/80, it was clear that Arsenal needed reinforcements if they wanted to progress to the next level, and it was essential that the money earned from their cup runs should be invested in the squad. Arsenal only received the maximum £600,000 allowed by UEFA and the EEC for international transfers when Liam Brady went to Juventus.[1]
With the impending departure of Brady, Arsenal fans were in need of some positives, so the signing of Clive Allen at least provided a glimmer of hope. The 19-year-old centre forward was one of the most exciting prospects in the English game. After scoring 28 goals for QPR in the Second Division in 1979/80 Arsenal signed the teenager to provide competition and assistance to Frank Stapleton and Alan Sunderland. Arsenal had smashed their transfer record, spending £1.25 million on Allen, completely blitzing their previous high of £440,000 on Brian Talbot in the process and making Allen the first £1 million teenager.[2]
Clive Allen's Arsenal career was over after just 62 days at the club. Allen, who played just three pre-season games for Arsenal, headed to Crystal Palace along with goalkeeper Paul Barron. In return England defender Kenny Sansom arrived at Highbury.[3]
Arsenal also bought defensive midfielder Peter Nicholas from Crystal Palace in March 1981. He joined Arsenal when the club had won a grand total of three of the last 14 games played. After that Arsenal played nine, and only dropped two points and Nicholas didn’t play on the losing side. When he joined Arsenal they were 7th, eleven points behind the leaders.
By the end of the season Arsenal were 3rd, seven points behind the leaders, and qualified for the UEFA Cup. Arsenal had gone through the whole season undefeated at Highbury in the League and were undefeated in their final nine matches.[4][5][6][7]
^Soar, Phil; Tyler, Martin (1986). Arsenal 1886-1986 : the official centenary history of Arsenal Football Club. Twickenham: Hamlyn. p. 244. ISBN9780600358718.
^Eccleshare, Charlie (13 October 2019). . The Athletic. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
^. The Guardian. 14 February 2018. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
^James, Josh (2008). Arsenal: The Complete Record. deCoubertin Books.
^Donnelley, Paul (2009). Arsenal On This Day: History, Facts and Figures from Every Day of the Year. Pitch Publishing Ltd.
^Soar, Phil; Taylor, Martin (2003). The Official Illustrated History of Arsenal. Hamlyn.
^Arsenal and Man United in hunt for Germany U-21 ace. "Arsenal FC - Kader 1980/1981". Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 19 August 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
January 01, 1970
1980, arsenal, season, 1980, season, arsenal, football, club, 55th, consecutive, season, flight, english, football, club, ended, their, campaign, third, football, league, first, division, despite, dismal, start, manager, terry, neill, attempting, follow, final. The 1980 81 season was Arsenal Football Club s 55th consecutive season in the top flight of English football The club ended their campaign third in the Football League First Division despite a dismal start Manager Terry Neill was attempting to follow up on finalist performances in both the FA Cup and the European Cup Winner s Cup during the previous season In the transfer business Arsenal lost first team regular Liam Brady to Juventus Arsenal signed 19 year old Clive Allen from Queens Park Rangers as a forward for 1 25 million a club transfer record However Allen failed to make a competitive match appearance for the club and was instead moved on to Crystal Palace in a swap deal for Kenny Sanson Peter Nicholas also joined the club in March Frank Stapleton was Arsenal s top scorer in both the league and in all competitions He left Arsenal for Manchester United at the end of the season Throughout the season Arsenal went undefeated at Highbury in the League Arsenal F C 1980 81 seasonChairmanDenis Hill WoodManagerTerry NeillFirst Division3rdFA CupThird roundLeague CupFourth roundTop goalscorerLeague Frank Stapleton 14 All Frank Stapleton 16 Highest home attendance54 045 vs Tottenham Hotspur 30 August 1980 Lowest home attendance17 431 vs Birmingham City 31 March 1981 Home coloursAway colours 1979 801981 82 Contents 1 Season summary 2 Pre season and friendlies 3 Results 3 1 First Division 3 2 Football League Cup 3 3 FA Cup 4 Squad 5 Top scorers 5 1 First Division 6 ReferencesSeason summary editAfter the gruelling and heart breaking 70 match season in 1979 80 it was clear that Arsenal needed reinforcements if they wanted to progress to the next level and it was essential that the money earned from their cup runs should be invested in the squad Arsenal only received the maximum 600 000 allowed by UEFA and the EEC for international transfers when Liam Brady went to Juventus 1 With the impending departure of Brady Arsenal fans were in need of some positives so the signing of Clive Allen at least provided a glimmer of hope The 19 year old centre forward was one of the most exciting prospects in the English game After scoring 28 goals for QPR in the Second Division in 1979 80 Arsenal signed the teenager to provide competition and assistance to Frank Stapleton and Alan Sunderland Arsenal had smashed their transfer record spending 1 25 million on Allen completely blitzing their previous high of 440 000 on Brian Talbot in the process and making Allen the first 1 million teenager 2 Clive Allen s Arsenal career was over after just 62 days at the club Allen who played just three pre season games for Arsenal headed to Crystal Palace along with goalkeeper Paul Barron In return England defender Kenny Sansom arrived at Highbury 3 Arsenal also bought defensive midfielder Peter Nicholas from Crystal Palace in March 1981 He joined Arsenal when the club had won a grand total of three of the last 14 games played After that Arsenal played nine and only dropped two points and Nicholas didn t play on the losing side When he joined Arsenal they were 7th eleven points behind the leaders By the end of the season Arsenal were 3rd seven points behind the leaders and qualified for the UEFA Cup Arsenal had gone through the whole season undefeated at Highbury in the League and were undefeated in their final nine matches 4 5 6 7 Pre season and friendlies editDate Opponents Venue Result ScoreF A Scorers Attendance 1 August 1980 Rangers A L 0 2 27 000 3 August 1980 Aberdeen A L 1 2 Stapleton 9 August 1980 Vasco da Gama N L 1 2 Talbot 10 August 1980 Partizan Belgrade A D 0 0Results editFirst Division edit Main article 1980 81 Football League First Division Pos Teamvte Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation 1 Aston Villa C 42 26 8 8 72 40 32 60 Qualification for the European Cup first round 2 Ipswich Town 42 23 10 9 77 43 34 56 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round 3 Arsenal 42 19 15 8 61 45 16 53 4 West Bromwich Albion 42 20 12 10 60 42 18 52 5 Liverpool 42 17 17 8 62 42 20 51 Qualification for the European Cup first round a Source World FootballRules for classification 1 Points 2 Goal difference 3 Goals scored C ChampionsNotes Liverpool qualified for the European Cup first round as the 1980 81 European Cup winners West Bromwich Albion v Arsenal 16 August 1980 1West Bromwich Albion0 1ArsenalWest BromwichStadium The Hawthorns Arsenal v Southampton 19 August 1980 2Arsenal1 1SouthamptonLondonStadium Highbury Coventry City v Arsenal 23 August 1980 3Coventry City3 1ArsenalCoventryStadium Highfield Road Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur 30 August 1980 4Arsenal2 0Tottenham HotspurLondonStadium Highbury Manchester City v Arsenal 6 September 1980 5Manchester City1 1ArsenalManchesterStadium Maine Road Arsenal v Stoke City 13 September 1980 6Arsenal2 0Stoke CityLondonStadium Highbury Middlesbrough v Arsenal 20 September 1980 7Middlesbrough2 1ArsenalMiddlesbroughStadium Ayresome Park Arsenal v Nottingham Forest 27 September 1980 8Arsenal1 0Nottingham ForestLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Leicester City 4 October 1980 9Arsenal1 0Leicester CityLondonStadium Highbury Birmingham City v Arsenal 7 October 1980 10Birmingham City3 1ArsenalBirminghamStadium St Andrew s Manchester United v Arsenal 11 October 1980 11Manchester United0 0ArsenalManchesterStadium Old Trafford Arsenal v Sunderland 18 October 1980 12Arsenal2 2SunderlandLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Norwich City 21 October 1980 13Arsenal3 1Norwich CityLondonStadium Highbury Liverpool v Arsenal 25 October 1980 14Liverpool1 1ArsenalLiverpoolStadium Anfield Arsenal v Brighton amp Hove Albion 1 November 1980 15Arsenal2 0Brighton amp Hove AlbionLondonStadium Highbury Leeds United v Arsenal 8 November 1980 16Leeds United0 5ArsenalLeedsStadium Elland Road Southampton v Arsenal 11 November 1980 17Southampton3 1ArsenalSouthamptonStadium The Dell Arsenal v West Bromwich Albion 15 November 1980 18Arsenal2 2West Bromwich AlbionLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Everton 22 November 1980 19Arsenal2 1EvertonLondonStadium Highbury Aston Villa v Arsenal 29 November 1980 20Aston Villa1 1ArsenalBirminghamStadium Villa Park Arsenal v Wolverhampton Wanderers 6 December 1980 21Arsenal1 1Wolverhampton WanderersLondonStadium Highbury Sunderland v Arsenal 13 December 1980 22Sunderland2 0ArsenalSunderlandStadium Roker Park Arsenal v Manchester United 20 December 1980 23Arsenal2 1Manchester UnitedLondonStadium Highbury Crystal Palace v Arsenal 26 December 1980 24Crystal Palace2 2ArsenalLondonStadium Selhurst Park Arsenal v Ipswich Town 27 December 1980 25Arsenal1 1Ipswich TownLondonStadium Highbury Everton v Arsenal 10 January 1981 26Everton1 2ArsenalLiverpoolStadium Goodison Park Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal 17 January 1981 27Tottenham Hotspur2 0ArsenalLondonStadium White Hart Lane Arsenal v Coventry City 31 January 1981 28Arsenal2 2Coventry CityLondonStadium Highbury Stoke City v Arsenal 7 February 1981 29Stoke City1 1ArsenalStoke on TrentStadium Victoria Ground Nottiingham Forest v Arsenal 21 February 1981 30Nottiingham Forest3 1ArsenalNottinghamStadium City Ground Arsenal v Manchester City 24 February 1981 31Arsenal2 0Manchester CityLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Middlesbrough 28 February 1981 32Arsenal2 2MiddlesbroughLondonStadium Highbury Leicester City v Arsenal 7 March 1981 33Leicester City1 0ArsenalLeicesterStadium Filbert Street Norwich City v Arsenal 21 March 1981 34Norwich City1 1ArsenalNorwichStadium Carrow Road Arsenal v Liverpool 28 March 1981 35Arsenal1 0LiverpoolLondonStadium Highbury Arsenal v Birmingham City 31 March 1981 36Arsenal2 1Birmingham CityLondonStadium Highbury Brighton amp Hove Albion v Arsenal 4 April 1981 37Brighton amp Hove Albion0 1ArsenalBrightonStadium Goldstone Ground Arsenal v Leeds United 11 April 1981 38Arsenal0 0Leeds UnitedLondonStadium Highbury Ipswich Town v Arsenal 18 April 1981 39Ipswich Town0 2ArsenalIpswichStadium Portman Road Arsenal v Crystal Palace 20 April 1981 40Arsenal3 2Crystal PalaceLondonStadium Highbury Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal 25 April 1981 41Wolverhampton Wanderers1 2ArsenalWolverhamptonStadium Molineux Stadium Arsenal v Aston Villa 2 May 1981 42Arsenal2 0Aston VillaLondonStadium Highbury Football League Cup edit Main article 1980 81 Football League Cup Swansea City v Arsenal 26 August 1980 Second round 1st Leg Swansea City1 1ArsenalSwanseaStadium Vetch Field Arsenal v Swansea City 2 September 1980 Second round 2nd Leg Arsenal3 1 4 2 agg Swansea CityLondonStadium Highbury Stockport County v Arsenal 22 September 1980 Third roundStockport County1 3ArsenalStockportStadium Edgeley Park Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal 4 November 1980 Fourth roundTottenham Hotspur1 0ArsenalLondonStadium White Hart Lane FA Cup edit Main article 1980 81 FA Cup Arsenal entered the FA Cup in the third round proper in which they were drawn to face Everton Everton v Arsenal 3 January 1981 Third roundEverton2 0ArsenalLiverpoolStadium Goodison ParkSquad edit 8 Note 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 IRL John Devine DF nbsp ENG Kenny Sansom MF nbsp ENG Brian Talbot DF nbsp IRL David O Leary DF nbsp SCO Willie Young MF nbsp ENG John Hollins FW nbsp ENG Alan Sunderland FW nbsp IRL Frank Stapleton MF nbsp ENG Steve Gatting MF nbsp ENG Graham Rix No Pos Nation Player DF nbsp ENG Steve Walford MF nbsp ENG Brian McDermott GK nbsp SCO George Wood MF nbsp ENG David Price MF nbsp ENG Paul Davis MF nbsp WAL Peter Nicholas FW nbsp ENG Paul Vaessen DF nbsp NIR Pat Rice DF nbsp NIR Sammy NelsonTop scorers editFirst Division edit nbsp Frank Stapleton 14 nbsp Alan Sunderland 7 nbsp Brian Talbot 7References edit Soar Phil Tyler Martin 1986 Arsenal 1886 1986 the official centenary history of Arsenal Football Club Twickenham Hamlyn p 244 ISBN 9780600358718 Eccleshare Charlie 13 October 2019 Seven London clubs in one day Clive Allen retraces the steps of a remarkable career The Athletic Archived from the original on 27 March 2023 Retrieved 27 October 2023 Footballers joining and leaving a club soon after The Guardian 14 February 2018 Archived from the original on 1 October 2022 Retrieved 28 October 2023 James Josh 2008 Arsenal The Complete Record deCoubertin Books Spurling Jon 2001 All Guns Blazing Aureus Donnelley Paul 2009 Arsenal On This Day History Facts and Figures from Every Day of the Year Pitch Publishing Ltd Soar Phil Taylor Martin 2003 The Official Illustrated History of Arsenal Hamlyn Arsenal and Man United in hunt for Germany U 21 ace Arsenal FC Kader 1980 1981 Worldfootball net Retrieved 19 August 2012 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1980 81 Arsenal F C season amp oldid 1223522701, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
