25 August 1928 - Football By Numbers

On 25 August 1928, Arsenal and Chelsea became the first teams in Europe to wear shirt numbers, though not against each other.

The two teams weren't even in the same division at the time, with Arsenal playing in the top flight and Chelsea in Division Two. But when they each opened their seasons, both had adopted the innovation of wearing shirt numbers to help identify the players.

The number were assigned by position used in the 2-3-5 formation prevalent at the time: goalkeeper (1), right full back (2), left full back (3), right center half (4), center half (5), left center half (6), outside right forward (7), inside right forward (8), center forward (9), inside left forward (10), and outside left forward (11) (though only Arsenal used all eleven, as Chelsea's keeper did not wear a number that day).

While both Arsenal and Chelsea may have been able to better identify their players, the day's results went in opposite directions, with Arsenal losing 3-2 to Sheffield Wednesday and Chelsea beating Swansea 4-0.

Although this was the first use of shirt numbers in Europe, they were used in the US four years earlier by Vesper Buick, when they lost to Fall River in the US Open Cup Final (shown below).

18 April 1993 - This Time, The Pain Came After The Gain

On 18 April 1993, Arsenal's Steve Morrow scored the winning goal in the League Cup final, then broke his arm in the post-match celebrations.

The Gunners were in the final against fellow Premier League side Sheffield Wednesday. Playing in front of a crowd of over 74,000 at Wembley, Wednesday took a quick lead with a goal from midfielder John Harkes in the eighth minute. Harkes's goal, rifled in from the edge of the box, made him the first American to score in a League Cup final.

Their lead didn't last long, however, as Arsenal's Paul Merson blasted a half-volley into the far corner from about twenty yards out in the 20th minute; the teams went into the break level at 1-1.

They remained level until the 68th minute, when a poor clearance by Wednesday dropped the ball into the path of Morrow just a few feet in front of the goal. He drove the ball past keeper Chris Woods to give the Gunners the lead and, as it turned out, the League Cup, as the 2-1 margin set the final score.

In the post-match celebrations, Arsenal captain Tony Adams tried to lift Morrow, but dropped him, breaking his arm. The injury forced Morrow to miss the remainder of the season, including a return to Wembley against Wednesday in the FA Cup final, which Arsenal won in a replay to claim the Cup Double.

12 April 1964 - That's Still A £2,000 Profit, Though

On 12 April 1964, the Sunday People tabloid broke the story of a fix two years earlier between Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. The ensuing investigation resulted in ten convictions, including a four-year prison sentence for the ringleader.

That ringleader was former striker Jimmy Gauld, who had played for several clubs in England and Scotland before a leg injury ended his career in 1961. During his playing days, Gauld supplemented his income through match-fixing. He continued that sideline into 1962, when he approached Sheffield Wednesday striker David Layne, a former teammate.

Gauld and Layne then enlisted two additional Wednesday players, Peter Swan and Tony Kay, persuading them to guarantee a loss in an upcoming match against Ipswich Town, then sitting in 21st place. They all placed bets against Wednesday, who, despite sitting thirteen spots higher, duly lost 2-0.

In 1964, Gauld tried to make an additional profit by selling his story to Sunday People for £7,000. The paper published the story on 12 April and an investigation quickly followed. Gauld, Layne, Swan, and Kay were all convicted, as were six Mansfield Town players connected to another Gauld fix. Gauld received the harshest punishment, getting a four-year prison term and a fine of £5,000. Additionally, all ten players were given lifetime bans from football.