Former Arsenal midfielder Gilberto Silva says that his side’s rivalry with Manchester United inspired them to their historic unbeaten season in 2003-04.
The Gunners lost the title to United in painful circumstances in 2002-03 and the Brazilian told FourFourTwo magazine that it proved to be their inspiration for the following season.
The Gunners won the title without losing a single game. “We tried to distance ourselves from talk of an undefeated league season.
“We were really stung by how we’d blown the lead we had over Manchester United in the 2002-03 title race, and all we wanted to do was take the title from them.
“Arsene did give an interview saying that we could win the league without losing a match, and that could have put a lot of pressure on us. Instead, we tried to enjoy the challenge of playing each game like a final.”
