When Ian Wright Broke Arsenal's Scoring Record With A Highbury Hat-Trick

On this day in 1997, a hat-trick against Bolton Wanderers saw Ian Wright overtake Cliff Bastin as the Gunners' all-time scorer
08:35, 13 Sep 2022

Thierry Henry may well be Arsenal’s all-time leading goalscorer - netting 228 times for the Gunners - but while the Frenchman’s exploits are impressive, Ian Wright's achievements were arguably more memorable having broken a record that had stood for 50 years.

Cliff Bastin scored 178 goals for the North London side between 1929 and 1947, and despite various attempts from numerous strikers, none would get close to that total – until Wright arrived at Highbury in 1991.

Something of a late starter in the professional game, Wright signed his first contract with Crystal Palace at the age of 21, having all but given up on a career in football.

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Spotted by a scout while playing non-league for Dulwich Hamlet, he was working as a plasterer and bricklayer, having been rejected after trials as a teenager at Brighton and Southend.

During his time at Selhurst Park, Wright scored 117 goals and was named Palace's Player of the Century – not bad for somebody who was only at the club for six years - and such was his reputation that by September of 1991 Wright had joined Arsenal for a then-club record fee of £2.5m.

He scored on his debut for the club, against Leicester City in the League Cup before bagging a hat trick in his First Division debut against Southampton – going on to win the Golden Boot with 31 goals that season.

Wright was Arsenal’s leading goal scorer for six seasons in a row, and was a key part of the League Cup and FA Cup double-winning team of 1993 while also helping the Gunners reach the final of the 1994 Cup Winners' Cup, although he was suspended for the final, which Arsenal won 1-0.

The departure of manager George Graham in 1993, the man who had broken the bank to bring him to Arsenal, initially threatened to end the love affair, with the striker asking new boss Bruce Rioch for a transfer, a request that was later rescinded.

And it would be Rioch who would mastermind one of the greatest transfers in Premier League history when he tempted Dutchman Dennis Bergkamp to make the switch from Inter to Arsenal in the summer of 1995 as he and Wright combined to take the club to the next level.

By the time Arsene Wenger arrived at Arsenal in 1996, Wright was 33 but still a danger in front of goal, ending the 1996/97 Premier League campaign second in the scoring charts with an impressive tally of 23.

This meant that, having scored against Leeds United on the opening day of the 1997/98 campaign, along with a double against Coventry City a few days later, Wright was just one short of the historic haul.

He would be frustrated by Southampton, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur in his next three outings, all of whom kept him at bay as he looked to break a record that had stood for half a century.

But when Bolton Wanderers visited Highbury on September 13th he would not be denied and after Alan Thompson had given the away side a shock early lead, Wright equalised in the 20th minute - pulling him level with the Arsenal legend.

In all the excitement Wright revealed a vest underneath his Arsenal shirt proclaiming: “179 JUST DONE IT!” but he hadn’t, he’d only equalled the long-standing record.

However, just moments later and the honour was officially his after he found the net in the famous red and white for the 179th time – tapping home from close range after Patrick Vieira had put the ball on a plate for him.

Ray Parlour made it 3-1 just before half time but Wright would cap a memorable day nine minutes from time as he completed his hat-trick by volleying home David Platt's cross.

"This has been the greatest week of my footballing life,” he revealed after the game.

“I claimed two for England against Moldova, a hat-trick here at Highbury and with it the record. It only seems like yesterday that I walked through the door here at Highbury from Crystal Palace and met George Graham."

Wright would end up leaving Arsenal at the end of that season having played a significant part in a Premier League and FA Cup double winning campaign with two FA Cups, a League Cup, a European Cup-Winners’ Cup and a Premier League title to his name.

In total, he scored 185 goals in 288 outings for the club – a record which was eventually eclipsed by Thierry Henry just eight years later.

Meanwhile, his average of a goal every 1.56 games is only bettered by Ted Drake in the list of Arsenal’s greatest ever marksmen.

Not bad for a man who was derided by some as past it when George Graham paid £2.5m to bring him to the club in 1991.

Arsenal are 12/1 to win the Premier League*

*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change

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