Category: If It Scores

5 Seasons (1973-1979) 2 English League Titles (1974, 1976) 2 European Cups (1976, 1977) 1 FA Cup (1979) Countless memories.

I want to ask one last question—”Is this your last game?”—but I don’t. Because I already know the answer.

The world watches in silence as one of football’s greatest players walks off the international stage—without a World Cup.

As the 1978 World Cup loomed, one question echoed across Europe: had Johan Cruyff already written his final masterpiece—or was his greatest act still to come?

“You always said football is about thinking. You’ve survived England. You’ve changed England. Why leave now?”

This was set to be one of the greatest tournaments in football history.

As the Arsenal players lifted the European Cup, Cruyff stood back, taking it all in. This was his crowning moment.

“I have unfinished business in England”

In just one season, Michels and Cruyff changed the DNA of Arsenal and English football itself.

This victory was more than just three points. It was the moment when English football began to accept that there was something special happening at Arsenal. The doubters still existed, but they could no longer simply dismiss Total Football as a passing fad.