The Hindu : Sport / Football : Bergkamp bids farewell at Arsenal's new home

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jul 24, 2006

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Sport - Football

Bergkamp bids farewell at Arsenal's new home

LONDON: Arsenal inaugurated its new stadium with a 2-1 victory over Ajax on Saturday, and bid farewell to its long-time Dutch striker Dennis Bergkamp with a testimonial match.

The friendly at Emirates Stadium marked not only the opening of the $712 million facility, but also the retirement of the 37-year-old, who played the last 11 years for Arsenal after starting his career at the Amsterdam club.

Bergkamp lined up with fellow Arsenal greats including Ian Wright against the four-time European champion, which included the likes of Johann Cruyff and Marco van Basten.

Thierry Henry and Nwankwo Kanu scored for Arsenal in front of 54,000 in the new stadium, which will host its first Premier League match on August 19 when Aston Villa visits to open the season.

The fans were decked out in the red and white of Arsenal or the orange of the Dutch national team, for whom Bergkamp scored 37 goals in 78 matches.

Praise for stadium

"If ever I was going to have a testimonial it was always going to be against Ajax. I have had a fantastic, successful time and a big part of that has been the fans," he told the crowd.

"It's an amazing stadium. I thought the pitch couldn't be better than Highbury but it is," he said.

The new stadium replaces Arsenal's 93-year-old home at Highbury. The club abandoned the 38,500-seater stadium at the end of last season to move two streets away.

The first kick of a ball came from Bergkamp's father Wim, who passed to his son, who then did likewise — tapping it to seven-year-old Mitchel.

Both teams played the first half with players from its regular roster, although Arsenal was mostly made up of youth players because most senior members are resting. In the second half, Arsenal utilised some of the most successful and popular players from Bergkamp's time at the club.

An array of stars

And while Bergkamp — who played both halves in his familiar No. 10 jersey — lined up with the likes of Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars, he was up against Dutch legends such as FC Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard, and Ronald and Frank De Boer.

Midway through the second half, Cruyff and Van Basten entered the game.

Ajax led at halftime thanks to Klaas Jan Huntelaar, who flicked in a left-wing cross for the first goal at the new stadium. However, goals by Henry and Kanu ensured Arsenal's win.

Bergkamp, who played from 1986-93 with Ajax before two years with Inter and then finishing with Arsenal, walked around the field after addressing the crowd, waving to fans and saying goodbye.

He helped the team to three Premier League titles, four FA Cups. He scored 120 goals for Arsenal and was voted English football's player of the year in 1998.

He retired from the Dutch side after the 2000 European Championship, with goals including a memorable winner in the 2-1 quarterfinal victory over Argentina at the 1998 World Cup. — AP

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