Arsenal top the Premier League under Mikel Arteta after 13 games this season. But on this day in 2012, the Spaniard missed a penalty in Arsene Wenger’s XI to draw 3-3 with Fulham.
Wenger took Arteta to Emirates Stadium in August 2011 after securing a deadline-beating £10m deal with Everton. The move had seemed dead in the water after talks between the clubs broke down. But the midfielder forced the move after handing in a transfer request.
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Arteta had featured 209 times for the Toffees across all competitions, more than with any club in his career. But the prospect of Champions League football in north London was too appealing to refuse. He also went on to win the FA Cup with the Gunners in 2014 and ‘15.
Arteta even captained Arsenal at Wembley in their 3-2 extra-time win over Hull City in the 2014 FA Cup final. But after Wenger named the San Sebastien native as the Gunners’ full-time captain, he needed season-ending ankle surgery and did not feature in the 2015 run.
The former Spain youth international – who never earned a senior cap – would feature in 150 games with the Gunners before he retired in 2016. Arteta then returned to Arsenal in December 2019 to succeed Wenger’s heir, Unai Emery, in the dugout at Emirates Stadium.
Arteta’s penalty miss held Arsenal to a 3-3 draw with Fulham on this day in 2012
Through his 150 appearances across all competitions at Arsenal, Arteta hit 16 goals and 11 assists. He hit six goals during each of his first two Premier League terms in north London. But on this day in 2012, the Spaniard’s late penalty miss let Fulham hang on for a 3-3 draw.
Fulham travelled to Arsenal in the Premier League on this day in 2012 with Wenger naming Arteta in his XI. It took Olivier Giroud just 11 minutes to break the deadlock as the forward headed home Theo Walcott’s cross. Arteta then fed Lukas Podolski to go two goals ahead.
Yet six minutes after the German scored, Dimitar Berbatov replied and assisted Alexander Mitrovic to enter the break level. The Bulgarian then added his second of the day after 67 minutes from the penalty spot. Yet Giroud headed in another Walcott cross to make it 3-3.
The match seemed certain to end level but referee Phil Dowd pointed to the spot deep in stoppage time. Arteta stepped up to be the 95th-minute hero, only to see Mark Schwarzer dive at full-stretch and save the Spaniard’s strike low to his left in the final act of the game.
Ten years on, Arteta is now the man trying to guide Arsenal back to the Champions League after five years away. He is also overseeing a potential title challenge with the Gunners top of the table with a two-point advantage over the defending champions, Manchester City.
So, with Arteta now in charge at Emirates Stadium, where are the other players who made Wenger’s starting XI for what was the Gunners’ 3-3 draw with Fulham on this day in 2012?
Vito Mannone (GK): FC Lorient signed the goalie who started Arsenal 3-3 Fulham
FC Lorient have now signed Vito Mannone, the goalkeeper who started Arsenal’s 3-3 draw with Fulham on this day in 2012. The Italian moved to the Ligue 1 side in September after leaving AS Monaco. He left the Gunners after eight years for 23 appearances back in 2013.
Bacary Sagna (RB): The Frenchman retired in 2020 before investing in backpacks
Bacary Sagna spent seven years at Arsenal from 2007 to 2014 with 284 games and one FA Cup title. He went on to play for Manchester City, Benevento and Montreal Impact before retiring in 2020. The Frenchman then invested in a weightless backpack brand, Gravipack.
Laurent Koscielny (CB): The Frenchman captained Arsenal to the 2017 FA Cup
Laurent Koscielny won the FA Cup three times during his time at Arsenal, including as their captain in 2017. Yet he missed the 2-1 final win over Chelsea through suspension. The 37-year-old later left north London in 2019 to join Bordeaux, where he retired this January.
Per Mertesacker (CB): The German is now Arsenal’s academy manager
Per Mertesacker is now Arsenal’s academy manager after stepping off the pitch and into an office after retiring in 2018. The German spent seven years as a player in north London for 221 games. He joined them from Werder Bremen for £8m on the same day as Arteta.
Thomas Vermaelen (LB): He is off to the World Cup as Belgium’s assistant coach
Thomas Vermaelen joined Arsenal from Ajax for £10m in 2009 and would go on to captain them after Robin van Persie and before Arteta. He left north London in 2014 for Barcelona for £15m and won the Champions League. He then joined Vissel Kobe in 2019 to this year.
The 85-cap Belgium centre-half filled in at left-back on this day in 2012 as Arsenal drew 3-3 with Fulham. Vermaelen also played at the 2014 and 2018 World Cups with the Red Devils. Now, he will head out to Qatar in 2022 as one of Roberto Martinez’s assistant managers.
Mikel Arteta (CDM): The Arsenal captain has become a table-topping coach
Arteta has become a table-topping manager since the former Arsenal midfielder returned to north London in 2019. Yet the future seemed bleak for the Spaniard in August 2021 as The Telegraph reported he only had five games to avoid the sack after a dire start to the term.
Francis Coquelin (CDM): The Frenchman won the Europa League at Villarreal
Arsenal sold Francis Coquelin to Valencia in 2018 for £12m after two FA Cup titles and 160 games since joining in his youth in 2008. The Frenchman went on to join Villarreal in 2020 and won the Europa League title during his debut year at El Submari Groguet under Emery.
Theo Walcott (RM): The former Arsenal winger is now back at Southampton
Arsenal signed a 16-year-old Walcott from Southampton for an initial £5m in 2006. Over the next 12 years, the 47-cap England ace scored 108 and created 80 goals in 398 games. Everton signed him in January 2018 for £20m before he returned to the Saints in 2020.
Santi Cazorla (CAM): Arsenal’s hero of the 2014 FA Cup final is now at Al-Sadd
Santi Cazorla put his name in Arsenal’s history books when the Spaniard sent his free-kick into the back of Hull’s net in the 2014 FA Cup final. It was one of 29 goals the 37-year-old scored over 180 games from 2012 to 2018. He then joined Villarreal and Al-Sadd in 2020.
Lukas Podolski (LM): Gornik Zabrze star hit for Arsenal vs Fulham on this day in 2012
Podolski hit home on this day in 2012 as Arsenal drew 3-3 with Fulham. The German struck 31 and created 17 goals across 82 games with the Gunners from 2012 to 2015. He went on to play for Galatasaray, Vissel Kobe, Antalyaspor and is now at Polish outfit Gornik Zabrze.
Olivier Giroud (ST): The AC Milan star is off to the Qatar World Cup at 36 years old
Giroud is off to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup at 36 years old as France look to retain their title from 2018. The 114-cap forward featured in all seven of Les Bleus’ fixtures in Russia. He had left Arsenal to join Chelsea in January 2018, before moving to AC Milan in 2021.
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