Patrick Vieira was the last captain to lift the Premier League title for us back in 2004 – but that all changes this weekend when Martin Odegaard adds his name to the list.
On a picture-perfect day in May 2004, Vieira rounded Ian Walker to score in our 2-1 win over Leicester City before hoisting the famous trophy in front of the Highbury faithful. Fast forward 8,044 days and our current skipper will be doing the same thing, this time at Selhurst Park when we take on Crystal Palace.
The three-time Premier League winner knows what it means to help us go all the way and was delighted to witness the celebratory scenes from players, staff and supporters.
“I think it is a really important period for us – after 22 years, winning the league. I think all the supporters around the world are really pleased and really happy at the moment. All the credit to the club, to Mikel and to the team because this is a big achievement.
“I saw the images (of the celebrations) and you can see what that means to the supporters. I think that shows Mikel and Arsenal had their ideas in place and kept working. Now you understand the work that has been done to get where they are today.”
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Patrick followed in the footsteps of Tony Adams in becoming the second skipper to lead us to Premier League glory. Odegaard will join the illustrious list, four years after becoming our captain under Mikel Arteta.
Assessing our PL title-winning captains, Patrick said, “I think you have a different profile of captain. You had a profile of Tony Adams who was quite really vocal. Me, I was a bit the opposite. I was more leading by example on the field, by putting my head where the people would put their feet.
“Then you have Martin Odegaard who is more a technical leader of the team on the field, and I think he fulfilled his role really well in not being scared to get the ball on his feet and (dictate) the tempo of the game.
“So that’s three captains and three different profiles of a captain and I think we all did it quite well.
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“When you are the captain and you’re leading the team, of course it is a proud moment.
“But when I look at the pictures again it’s not just about lifting the trophies, it’s the joy that all the players (feel) behind it. A group of players who have been up and down and managed to win that title – the pride of leading a group of players who achieved something quite special.”
There are certain parallels to that of Patrick’s side and Martin’s outfit. Vieira was part of a side that finished runner-up three times in a row before winning the league in 2002, a trick we’ve repeated in 2026.
Every side goes through difficult moments in a season that can make, or break a campaign. In 2004, under Vieira, our unbeaten Premier League side went out of the Champions League and FA Cup in the space of four days, which could’ve derailed our league season.
In 2025/26, losing the Carabao Cup final was followed by elimination in the FA Cup and defeat to Bournemouth and Manchester City to leave us in second place going into the final five games.
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“During the season there will be a period where you’re going to go through a difficult period. It’s about how as a group and as a captain you manage those periods. Of course, being out of the Champions League was quite tough and difficult for us because it was one of our objectives.
“But you want to play the next game straight away because you want to show to people how strong you are mentally, managing those difficult periods to be as short as possible to allow yourself to go back and to be competitive again.
“In our time we did it when we were out of the Champions League. I think this season, when you get to the last couple of games, losing against City was tough.”
“But they came together and I think that just shows how this group is together – and how strong they are together.
“I think their togetherness allows them to manage after City and show everybody how good they can be. I think it was one of the key moments of the season.”
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