Revealed! Arsenal’s Invincibles always fighting in training
...as Lauren reveals he had bust-ups with Henry and Campbell
Arsenal’s Invincibles were always fighting in training, according to former Gunners defender Lauren.
Arsene Wenger masterminded a squad full of quality and character to the league title in the 2003/04 season, going undefeated.
And while there was joy and happiness at the end of it, things weren’t always so rosy during.
That’s according to Cameroonian full-back Lauren, who has revealed just how competitive things were at the club.
He even admitted to being involved in a scrap with Gunners legend Thierry Henry.
Speaking to the Arsenal website, the 43-year-old said: “Of course there was fighting. I love at Arsenal that the journalists didn’t go to the training sessions.
“In our time if the journalists were to attend training there would be history every single day.
“How competitive we were – all fighting between ourselves. I had a fight with Thierry [Henry], Thierry with Martin [Keown], Patrick with Freddie [Ljungberg].
“We were all very competitive and we were all fighting because we all had big egos, big personalities but by the time the games arrived, we were fighting for the same goal.”
Lauren admitted that Wenger was the glue that held all the “big egos” together, and brought them to the stunning success.
He added: “You need that, big egos but you have the manager as well that knows how to control the big egos, how to control those players.
“I prefer to be in a team that you see players face to face, you can talk to him, tell him whatever you want.
“But when the games arrive you will be 100 per cent for the same goal, to achieve what we set out to do at the beginning of the season.
“This is the most important thing; without that, it is difficult to win things.
“I don’t want to be in a team that nothing happens, we’re all quiet, if you win no problem, if you lose no problem. You can’t compete like that.
“In our time we were all competitive, we were all fighting between each other.
“But at the end of the day we were fighting for the same goal and that’s why we managed to win things.”
Arsenal became the first team to ever go undefeated in a 38-game season.