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30 Greatest Teams in Premier League History

By Benjamin Taylor

Who will lift this trophy in May and join these 30 teams among the greatest ever to compete in the English Premier League? (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Who will lift this trophy in May and join these 30 teams among the greatest ever to compete in the English Premier League? (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) /
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1. Arsenal, 2003-04

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Arsenal’s French forward Thierry Henry (R) celebrates as teammate Robert Pires (3rdL) is mobbed by Patrick Vieira (L), Ashley Cole (2ndL) Gilberto Silva (2ndR) and Dennis Bergkamp (3rdR) after scoring against Tottenham during their Premier League clash at White Hart Lane in north London, 25 April 2004. Arsenal leads 2-0 at half time. AFP PHOTO / ODD ANDERSEN – – No telcos,website use to description of license with FAPL on, www.faplweb.com – – (Photo credit should read ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images)
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Arsenal’s French forward Thierry Henry (R) celebrates as teammate Robert Pires (3rdL) is mobbed by Patrick Vieira (L), Ashley Cole (2ndL) Gilberto Silva (2ndR) and Dennis Bergkamp (3rdR) after scoring against Tottenham during their Premier League clash at White Hart Lane in north London, 25 April 2004. Arsenal leads 2-0 at half time. AFP PHOTO / ODD ANDERSEN – – No telcos,website use to description of license with FAPL on, www.faplweb.com – – (Photo credit should read ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images) /

Starting XI: J. Lehmann (GK); Lauren, K. Toure, S. Campbell, A. Cole; F. Ljungberg, P. Vieira, G. Silva, R. Pires; D. Bergkamp, T. Henry.

You didn’t expect it to be anyone else, did you? Arsenal’s 2003-04 team are undoubtedly the greatest in Premier League history. They were, quite literally, unbeatable – finishing the league season with 26 wins, 12 draws, and precisely zero losses. It’s a feat that had never been achieved before, and hasn’t been achieved since.

The only major change to the side that had finished 2nd to Manchester United the previous season came in the form of goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, who replaced the out-of-contract David Seaman. Elsewhere, Kolo Toure was promoted from a backup role to start alongside Sol Campbell in central defence, and the likes of Jose Antonio Reyes and Gael Clichy were signed to provide depth in attack and defence. The list of Arsenal’s league results in 2003-04 makes for wide-eyed reading; they beat their closest rivals for the title, Chelsea, home and away, and fired four or more goals past their opponents on five separate occasions.

Henry, borderline unplayable at this point in his career, was unequivocally the star – his astonishing tally of 30 goals and 18 assists would be tricky to match on FIFA Career mode, let alone in real life. But the performances of Bergkamp and Pires (24 league goals between them) were not far behind. Vieira and Gilberto Silva were an unstoppable pairing in central midfield, and the back four ensured that Arsenal also finished the season with the league’s best defensive record.

The one knock on this otherwise flawless team is that they fell short in the cup competitions: they fell to Manchester United in the FA Cup semi-finals and were dumped out by Middlesbrough at the same stage in the League Cup. In the Champions League quarterfinals, they blew a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1 at home to Chelsea and end any dreams of European glory. But we can nitpick all we want – there’s no doubt that they are the finest team ever to grace the Premier League.

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