1981/82 UEFA Cup: Arsenal v Winterslag

This article first appeared in issue 270 of The Gooner

The start of the 1981/82 season was not going swimmingly for Arsenal manager Terry Neill. After losing Liam Brady in the summer of 1980, Frank Stapleton was the next star to leave Highbury, his departure in August 1981 made that much harder when he chose to join Manchester United. Without adequate replacements for their star men, the Arsenal faithful were restless.

A third-place finish during the previous campaign had seen Neill’s men go through the season unbeaten at home. But alarm bells immediately chimed when Stoke left Highbury victorious on the opening day of the 81/82 season. Five defeats in their first twelve League matches indicated that all was not well, and more worryingly the team had scored just eight goals in the process of slumping to 14^th place in the table.

The Stapleton-shaped hole was an obvious issue. Linked with all sorts of replacements – Justin Fashanu, Joe Jordan, Trevor Francis, Charlie Nicholas, Tony Woodcock, Andy Gray – Arsenal fans were driven to frustration, as Neill tried unsuccessfully to fill the void. The arrival of John Hawley from Sunderland for £50,000 was hardly a signing to set the pulses racing, and a reliance on youngsters Paul Vaessen, Brian McDermott and Raphael Meade was far from ideal.

There was a welcome distraction in the UEFA Cup. Goals from McDermott and Meade gave Arsenal an unexpected 2-0 win in Greece against Panathinaikos, and a Brian Talbot strike in the second leg saw the club through to the next round. And when Belgian part-timers Winterslag were paired with Arsenal in the draw for the second round, it looked as if Neill could at least look forward to another European trip in the last 16 of the competition.

Robert Waseige had led Winterslag to a fifth-place finish before departing for KSC Lokeren, with Mathieu Bollen taking over. Just like Neill, Bollen was struggling. With just six goals scored in nine matches, Winterslag were just above the relegation zone, and Bollen’s time at the club would turn out be short lived. But in his brief spell in charge, he would manage to topple an English giant, and increase the pressure on an already beleaguered Neill.

A 3-2 aggregate win over Danish club Bryne set up the tie with Arsenal, the first leg to be played in the Belgian mining town. On the eve of the match, Neill received a vote of confidence from the Arsenal board, with senior director Tony Wood adamant that the manager had the full support of everyone at the club.

“I’m speaking for all of the board when I say I can see no reason for a change,” Wood informed the press. “When his present three year agreement is up I’ll be delighted if he signs a new one.” Neill may have had the backing of his employers, but there was some doubt as to whether the travelling Arsenal fans felt the same way.

Inspecting the pitch before the match, Neill moved towards a section of Arsenal supporters who were involved in some fighting. Struck on the shoulder by an object, believed to be a brick, the Arsenal manager was lucky not to be knocked out. “I don’t know either if it was an Arsenal supporter responsible,” Neill commented. “Nevertheless, it was mindless behaviour to say the least.”

Neill may have avoided one headache, yet the Belgian team containing a student, miners, a teacher, and a bank manager, caused him more pain. On a pitch that had been drenched by persistent rain, Arsenal went close through Talbot and Graham Rix efforts. But again, Arsenal would pay for their wastefulness in front of goal.

“For the umpteenth time this season, Neill was reminded that not even the most marvellous defensive discipline can win matches,” Joe Melling wrote in the Express. Leaving themselves open to a sucker punch, Arsenal were stunned when Winterslag took the lead just after the hour. A corner led to the only goal of the match, the referee adjudging that Kenny Sansom had not cleared Karl Berger’s effort before it had crossed the line.

The defeat was disappointing, yet the general opinion was that Arsenal would put the Belgians to the sword in the return leg at Highbury. But Neill urged caution. “There’s a lot of nonsense talked about part-timers. We know that Winterslag will be as determined and aggressive as they were at their place.”

The situation was hardly helped when hesitation by Pat Jennings allowed Mathy Billen to head Winterslag ahead after just four minutes, and frustration grew on the terraces as the evening progressed. Unfortunately, one young man would be at the centre of the storm, as 20-year-old Paul Vaessen became the target of the boo boys amongst the 22,930 crowd.

Vaessen was certainly not alone in underperforming that night. But as Clive White wrote in the Times, “His sleepy manner, topped with an abject failure to do little right, made him the butt of Arsenal supporters’ frustrations.” Chants of “Vaessen off” filled Highbury, and there were cheers when the young forward was replaced by Paul Davis. The hero of Turin, and a player who had battled back from a severe knee injury, was left broken and humiliated.

Vaessen’s brother Lee, who became involved in scuffles on the North Bank whilst defending his sibling, describes the aftermath in Stewart Taylor’s excellent Stuck in a Moment book. “It destroyed him. It destroyed his faith in football. He was never the same after that. It ruined him. It destroyed his pride, his self-confidence.” Forced to retire two years later, Vaessen’s life spiralled out of control. Do yourself a favour, and read Taylor’s book; it’s a touching account of such a sad story.

A 32^nd minute strike from John Hollins gave Arsenal a foothold in the tie, and Rix’s goal with 19 minutes remaining provided hope. But Arsenal huffed and puffed, and unsurprisingly given their troubles post-Stapleton, the third goal never arrived. Booed off the pitch, Arsenal’s humiliation was complete. Dumped out of Europe by the part-timers playing for a club from a mining town, the press were quick in referring to Arsenal’s pit of despair.

“Now is the Winterslag of Arsenal’s discontent”, declared the Times headline. “It was another Arsenal performance lacking in wit and wisdom, skill and science,” wrote Melling. Even Bollen laid the boot in. “I knew we could beat Arsenal. Their approach is always the same. They don’t play at all in midfield. All they were interested in was getting the ball into our penalty area by long balls from the back.”

“This has got to be the most disappointing result for me and the club this-season,” Neill responded. “I can understand and sympathise with the gloom and despondency of our supporters. It is up to me to put it right.”

In fairness to Neill, the team did respond well after the Winterslag debacle. Five straight league wins, and just six defeats in the remaining 30 matches saw the club finish fifth (this had nothing to do with the signing of Ray Hankin, however). Ultimately this led to another chastening experience, though, this time at the hands of Spartak Moscow in the 1982/83 UEFA Cup.

Winterslag went on to lose 5-0 against Dundee United in the next round, and by the turn of the year Bollen had departed. But the team enjoyed their moment in the spotlight, as they created an unhappy chapter in the history of Arsenal Football Club.