Arsenal’s dramatic 1989 title-clinching victory at Liverpool remains one of the most iconic matches in English football history.
George Graham’s side set off to Anfield for a Friday night showdown at the end a gruelling 1988/89 campaign for a title decider that had been pushed back following the Hillsborough disaster.
For the Gunners, the equation was simple: win by two clear goals and they would overhaul Kenny Dalglish’s side and they would claim their first Division 1 title for 18 years.
Alan Smith on Arsenal’s 1989 title success
Striker Alan Smith led the Arsenal attack that evening and can still vividly recall the tension and key moments that led to one of the all-time great title climaxes.
“There was a relaxed feeling within the team because nobody fancied us,” Smith tells FourFourTwo. “The papers and TV pundits had written us off – nobody thought we could go there and win by two goals. We just thought we’d give it a shot.
“George Graham’s team talks were fantastic, he sent us out with clear minds. He emphasised the need to keep a clean sheet, which we thought was strange given that we needed two goals!
“At half-time, it was 0-0. We came into the dressing room and he lifted us again, saying, “This is perfect. We’ve kept the clean sheet, now we push on. We’ll soon get the first goal and then the second.” He even said we might get a third. We were nudging each other thinking, ‘What’s the gaffer on?’”
It was Smith that opened the scoring eight minutes after the break, when he headed home a Nigel Winterburn free-kick for a goal that did not go down well with the Reds defence.
“When my goal went in, and the Liverpool lads surrounded the ref and linesman, you naturally thought that it might be disallowed,” he recalls, before recalling his role in Michael Thomas’ iconic injury-time title-clinching strike.
“For the second, as it was coming to me, I thought, ‘I’ve got to turn in one movement here, the whistle could go at any second.’ I took a chance with my touch and saw a yellow shirt – a bit of a blur in my peripheral – it was Mickey Thomas making one of those runs he’d made all night.
“Mickey never did anything before he wanted to, he was so laid back. We thought he was going to leave it too late and someone would get a tackle in.
“But he left it and left it – he said he was waiting for Bruce Grobbelaar to make his move – and just flicked it over him. The further you get from it, the more special it becomes as it’s a game that will never be repeated: a standalone, head-to-head for the title when everyone else had finished.
“It was a special, special night.”
