Mention Port Vale to any members of Arséne Wenger’s class of ‘98, and following a sharp intake of breath, they’ll acknowledge that the men from the Potteries came within a whisker of ending our double dream that season.
When we were drawn at home to Port Vale in the FA Cup third round, it was widely assumed that the title-chasing Gunners would easily defeat a side in the lower region of the second tier, without a win in nearly two months.
The two clubs hadn’t faced one another since the early years of the 20th century, when Second Division Woolwich Arsenal and Burslem Port Vale drew 0-0 in the final match of the 1903/94 season.