Seven years ago today I had the crazy idea that I could do a daily Arsenal blog.

Starting with in a different guise, the site has, over the years, grown beyond all recognition, changed name and now gets millions of hits per month.

To celebrate our birthday, a number of the Daily Cannon writers have been working hard on producing what we believe to be a fabulous eBook on Arsenal’s Greatest Number 7’s – seven of them to be precise, with a few notable mentions added in as well.

Just under 130 men and women have pulled on the 7 since numbered shirts became a thing, established by our very own Herbert Chapman who had to fight the FA who weren’t quite so keen on such a radical notion as something that could help their teammates identify others in terms of position.

We deliberated long and hard about which players should be included and, in the end, settled on six men and one woman who, by anyone’s definition, could be considered true legends of the club, even if you haven’t heard of one or two of them yourself. We also explain why that is a travesty.

Do you know who was the first to wear the number 7 shirt for Arsenal? Or the 51st? We do and they’re all in here, along with the 78th, 94th, 96th, 100th, 108th, 120th and 121st.

We’ve spoken to friends, family members and even some players themselves to bring you an exclusive look at the best footballers to ever wear the fabled number 7 shirt at the club and pervading throughout each story is the love the players had for the club then and still hold now. Like us, they are fans of the mighty Arsenal and many still have ongoing connections to the Gunners long after hanging up their boots.

Personal memories, historic moments and little-known facts are all presented in a way that we hope will bring you hours of entertainment and provide you with fascinating tidbits to share with your own friends and family during the next Arsenal game.

We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it for you.

And if you enjoy it even a fraction as much as you did watching some of these players, then we consider that a job very well done.

Also available on Kobo, Nook and available on direct download from Daily Cannon Direct  –
Direct Download.