Arsenal’s 16 Patrick Vieira replacements and how they fared

Patrick Vieira was one of Arsenal’s greatest ever players so it’s no surprise they’ve struggled to replace him since he left for Juventus in 2005.

Vieira won 10 major honours at Highbury, including three Premier League titles, and bestrode Arsenal’s midfield as a dominant box-to-box player. As the club have declined, many have pointed to Arsenal’s inability to replace him in the years since his departure

We’ve identified 16 players who were meant to replace Vieira and investigated how they fared.

Mathieu Flamini

Flamini’s first stint at Arsenal began in July 2004, when he arrived on a free transfer from Marseille one year before Vieira’s departure.

He struggled initially but enjoyed an excellent 2007-08 season alongside Cesc Fabregas as Arsenal came close to winning the title.

Arsenal were disappointed when Flamini rejected a new contract and signed for AC Milan that summer but the French midfielder rejoined the club five years later and played a crucial role in the club’s good form in the early parts of the 2013-14 campaign.

Abou Diaby

One word: injuries.

Diaby was a talented player, as he demonstrated on select occasions during his nine-year spell at the Emirates, and possessed many of the attributes needed to replace Vieira.

But his career was wrecked by injuries and Diaby only made 16 Premier League appearances in his final four years at Arsenal.

“I am frustrated and disappointed for Abou Diaby with all the injuries he suffered,” Vieira said in 2012.

“If he could have improved constantly, he would have reached an exceptional level. About his potential, he is better than me, better on a technical level, better dribbler, and better scorer too.”

Alex Song

Written off at the start of his Arsenal career and booed during one defeat at Fulham, Song became much improved after a loan spell at Charlton in 2007.

The Cameroon international blossomed into an unconventional deep-lying playmaker during the 2011-12 season and registered 14 assists – more than any other Arsenal player that year.

Such form earned him a move to Barcelona in 2012 but Song never reproduced that form in Spain.

READ: Remembering the strange season Alex Song became Arsenal’s new Fabregas

Denilson

Never quite good enough but that didn’t stop Denilson from making over 150 appearances for Arsenal between 2006 and 2011.

And that fact speaks volumes about Arsenal’s slump after moving to the Emirates.

Lassana Diarra

You may remember him playing for…