Former Arsenal star, Kanu, has opened up about his iconic hattrick against Chelsea, which he claims to remember like it was yesterday.

It was 1999 and Chelsea were 2-0 up at Stamford Bridge. Kanu, something of an unsung hero, was subbed on and proceeded to score a hattrick so that Arsenal left with three points.

Speaking to the Arsenal programme ahead of Arsenal’s impending Premier League clash against the Blues at the Emirates, Kanu spoke about how belief pushed him to score.

“I remember this game like it was yesterday,” he recalled.

“We were losing 2-0 at the time and I scored twice to bring it back to 2-2. I remember there were only a few minutes left. I got the ball on the left and then dribbled past the goalkeeper. From that point there was only one thing on my mind.

“I just made sure I hit the target because I knew it would go in. Even if I missed the chance, it would have been 2-2, which is not bad given that we were behind. To be a good player, you always have to feel as though you can do it, and then I did.

“You have to have that belief. Even when we were 2-0 down, we knew we had to quality to come back. Then when it was 2-2, we knew there was a chance of scoring a third, and after I’d already scored twice I felt like I could have scored four that game! Unfortunately it was only three on that occasion but that was enough to win the game.”

Apart from the Community Shield, Arsenal haven’t beaten Chelsea since October 2011. That’s five years and it’s not acceptable. If we’re going to win the title any time soon, we need to start looking like a proper team against our rivals.

We haven’t been too bad against Manchester City in recent seasons but Manchester United and Chelsea still remain huge problems for us.

Maybe someone can channel their inner Kanu?

Here’s the wonderful hattrick again because why not?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VNPVAUOai4

You can read more about what Per Mertesacker had to say ahead of Chelsea on the Arsenal programme app, which you can buy from Play Store or iTunes.