The Romford Pele

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Ray Parlour is one of Arsenal’s unsung heroes. He made 466 appearances at the club and scored 32 goals.
Parlour came through the Arsenal ranks and made his debut as a teenager against Liverpool in 1992, giving away a penalty in a 2-0 defeat. It was not until the 94/95 season that Parlour broke through as a regular in the first team.
He was known as a workhorse and a player who could put in a tackle, but it was the arrival of manager Arsene Wenger that we suddenly saw what Ray Parlour was all about. Wenger gave Parlour the license to express himself and the Arsenal faithful took the Romford-born player to their hearts.
He was played on the right wing or in central midfield, and the 1997/98 season brought the double back to Highbury. Parlour was excellent that year and was named man of the match as Arsenal beat Newcastle 2-0 to win the FA Cup. He played in 47 matches and scored six goals in that season.
The Englishman continued to impress season after season and once again helped the club to the double in 2000/01. Arsenal beat Chelsea in the FA Cup with Parlour scoring a 30 yard strike. Parlour may not of been prolific but when he did score goals they would be spectacular. It worth watching Ray Parlour’s best ten goals, he was not a prolific goal scorer but when he did score they were worth watching again and again.
In his successful Arsenal career, Parlour won the League title three times, four FA Cups, one League Cup and one European Cup Winners’ Cup. But in a team with such greats like Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg and Nicolas Anelka, Parlour was never going to get the recognition he desperately deserved.
Parlour left in 2004 but this was after he had helped the club win the title in the ‘Invincible’ season.
Fans loved Parlour due to his ability to tackle, his never say die attitude and his non-stop running throughout the whole 90 minutes. A player with quick feet and deceptive pace, he was a difficult player to keep under wraps with his tenacious play. I loved Ray Parlour for how he played the game, he was not afraid to put the boot in if needed but he also possessed great technical ability.
One of the most underrated Arsenal legends to have played for the club. The fact he is at number 19 on a list of 50 of the Gunners greatest players speaks volumes of how much the Arsenal faithful loved him.
The Romford Pele is a true Arsenal legend.