Vieira, O'Leary, Adams, Fabregas, Rice, Henry. Just some of the names who have led Arsenal throughout the past three decades.
In a week where Arsenal will recognise the achievements of former captain Frank Mclintock, who led Arsenal to three major honours as a captain, we pose the question, who has been the most influential captain to the club's successes throughout the years?

Frank Mclintock: 1967 - 1972

Where better to start than with Frank Mclintock, Arsenal's tough-tackling Scotsman who endured a memorable 9 years at Highbury, 6 of them spent as captain.

Mclintock, who was signed for £80,000 was a club-record transfer at the time, captained the club through various spells of success under manager Bertie Mee's leadership.

Frank had to be patient before he could win trophies during his time at Arsenal, having captained the club to two separate League Cup Final defeats in 1968 and 1969, he finally tasted silverware after leading the club to the 1970 Fairs Cup Final victory.

The Scot would then later captain Arsenal through one of the clubs most historic times, winning their first league and cup double in the following two years, Mclintock skippered Arsenal to another FA Cup Final in 1972, which ended in a dissapointing defeat to Leeds United.

Known for his leadership qualities both on and off the pitch, Frank was an adored figure amongst the fans and players, and was awarded an MBE for his services to football in 1972.

Pat Rice: 1977 - 1980

Pat Rice, the man who began life at Arsenal as an apprentice, worked his way up to the senior team after years in the reserves. After finding playing success amongst the side who won the double in 1971 led by captain Frank Mclintock, Rice eventually became captain of the club himself in 1977.

Rice led Arsenal to four cup finals between 1978 and 1980, lifting the FA Cup in 1979 and captaining the Gunners to the UEFA Cup Winners Cup Final in 1980, which the North-London club unfortunately lost in a closely contested penalty shootout against Spaniards, Valencia.

After a more than successful playing career with Arsenal, Rice left in 1980 to sign for Graham Taylor's Watford, where he captained the club back into the First Division in the 1981-82 season.

Rice did make a return to Arsenal, upon his retirement from his playing career in 1984, he returned to North London to take up a youth coaching role for the next 12 years, eventually becoming Arsene Wenger's right hand man and being handed the assistant manager's job. After an incredible 44 years of dedication to Arsenal Football Club, Rice retired in 2012 and still remains a treasured icon amongst the club.

Arsene Wenger, who grew close to his counterpart throughout the years spent working together said: "Pat is a true Arsenal legend and has committed almost his whole life to Arsenal Football Club, which shows huge loyalty and devotion to this club...I will always be indebted to him for his expert insight into Arsenal and football as a whole. On the training pitches and on matchdays, Pat has always been a passionate, loyal and insightful colleague, who we will all miss."

Tony Adams: 1987 - 2002

Arguably the best captain Arsenal have had is Tony Adams, defensive stalwart and the man Sir Alex Ferguson said "couldn't wait for him to retire" due to his defensive consistancy during his 19-year stint at Highbury, quickly established himself as an Arsenal fan favorite by famously saying "I will sign any contract Arsenal put in-front of me without reading it". Adams quickly developed a love for the Gunners and went on to play over 500 games for the North London club, scoring 32 goals in the process and remains the only man in Premier League history to captain a side to top-flight championship wins in three different decades.

In 1996 a relitively unknown Frenchman named Arsene Wenger took charge at Highbury and somewhat revitalised what was a quickly diminishing career for troubled alcoholic Tony Adams, but Wenger managed to get another five years out of the Arsenal journeyman in a spell where Adams led the Gunners to doubles in 1998 and 2002.

Adams has partnered the likes of Martin Keown, Steve Bould, Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon and Sol Campbell in defence throughout a glittering career which saw him lift the Premier League trophy on two occasions, two Division One Championships, three FA Cup's, a European Cup Winners Cup and two League Cups, Adams also made 66 appearances for England at International level.

Tony Adams, who is now decorated in bronze outside The Emirates Stadium, was a natural born leader, who wasn't shy of confrontation or a heavy challenge, he relished the big games and lifted everyone around him.

Patrick Vieira: 2002 - 2005

Following the retirement of club legend and captain Tony Adams in 2002, Arsenal were in need of a new man to lead the side into battle, in the same way Adams did, having previously seen the club's greatest leaders coming from defenders, it was a refreshing change to see Arsene Wenger hand the captaincy to a player further up the field.

After rejecting personal terms with Ajax in 1996, Vieira signed for Arsenal from his boyhood club AS Cannes in the same year, for a fee believed to be in the region of £3.5million pounds.

His signing signalled an influx of French imports into the club, with Remi Garde (former Lyon manager) also being signed and the triumphant Arsene Wenger taking over the reigns from the unsuccessful Bruce Rioch for the first time. The midfielder quickly established himself as a first team regular, coupled with international team-mate Emmanuel Petit, he became an instrumental figure in the Arsenal side which won the league and cup double in the 1997-98 season.

Despite disciplinary problems overshadowing the following three years of his career at Arsenal, growing speculations surrounding his career at the club and a rumoured move to Manchester United being quickly swept aside by Arsene Wenger, the ever-maturing Vieira came into his own in the 2000-01 season, where he was part of the side who again won the league and cup double.

Following the retirement of club legend Tony Adams in 2002, Arsene Wenger handed the captains armband to Patrick Vieira. Although initially describing the feeling as "daunting", Vieira would captain the club to arguably their most succesful spell in the clubs history, 'The Invincibles' season on 2003-04, where they reclaimed the league title and became the first English team in over a century to go through an entire league season unbeaten. Vieira won a further two honours, lifting the Community Shield and FA Cup in 2004, beating bitter rivals Manchester United on both occasions before moving on to Juventus in 2005 for £13.75million.

The Frenchman's time at Arsenal will be remembered fondly by Arsenal fans and although his occasional ill-discipline overshadowed some of his finer achievements, the Frenchman provided some of the Premier League and Arsenal's greatest moments throughout his 9 years spent at the club and his bitter feud with Roy Keane will be remember for years to come.

It could be argued that Arsenal have never had a captain that could replicate the successes and leadership that the above names brought to the club, since the departure of Patrick Vieira.

Thierry Henry took over from Vieira but failed to match his successes as a captain, despite achieving various individual awards for his personal brilliance. Henry did lead Arsenal to the Champions League Final defeat in 2006, but Arsenal failed to recapture their title-winning mentality.
Since then the likes of William Gallas, Cesc Fabregas, Robin Van Persie, Thomas Vermaelen and current captain Mikel Arteta have all tried to replicate their compatriots success, but despite some trophy success, the comparisons between the clubs most recent skippers, and the all time greats of the past are clear to see.

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About the author
Chris Frith
21 year old studying Football, Business & Media at University College of Football Business come September, at the iconic Wembley Stadium. Aspiring journalist currently writing regularly for two separate independent news providers.