Arsenal faced Southampton on Wednesday in the Barclays Premier League. Plenty of Arsenal players looked to influence the outcome of the match, with Alexis Sanchez proving the difference. Some Arsenal legends scored their first league goals against Southampton, is it a right of passage?
Thierry Henry
Henry came to Arsenal with a huge reputation and with big shoes to fill. Signed as a replacement for Real Madrid bound Nicholas Anelka, Henry was quickly shifted from a winger to a striker. Doubts were raised over whether Henry could adapt to this new role and the English game. He didn't score in his first eight games for Arsenal, but his first came against Southampton. His beautiful curling shot for just outside the 18-yard box beat the keeper and went in. After this an avalanche of Henry goals flooded in; he ended the season with 26 goals for Arsenal. In his right seasons at the club he became their leading goalscorer.
Dennis Bergkamp
Dennis Bergkamp, like Thierry Henry, is viewed as being one of the best players of his generation. But, like Henry, Bergkamp struggled to adapt to English football. It took the former British record transfer holder (Stan Collymore broke it again just days after Bergkamp originally broke it) seven games to grab his first goal for Arsenal. His first also came against Southampton, a great first time finish from a Helder cross. He scored a second in that match, a long range strike. Berkgamp scored 11 goals in his first season at Arsenal and he went on to 120 in 11 years at Arsenal.
Henry and Bergkamp weren't the only players to score first goals against Southampton, Ian Wright scored his first league goal (and first Arsenal hat trick) against Southampton. Podolski scored his second Arsenal goal, and first at the Emirates, against Southampton and Sanchez scored his fourth Arsenal goal, and his first League Cup goal against Southampton earlier this season. Both Podolski's and Sanchez's were both superb costless-kicks. A bit of Sanchez magic was on show yet again on Wednesday, as he won the Gunners yet another fixture.
