The Marquis De Sade was never short of a quote or two, but one that currently could be applied to certain members of Chelsea’s first team squad at the current time sprang to mind after today’s latest off field crisis at Stamford Bridge. “Lust is to the other passions what the nervous fluid is to life; it supports them all, lends strength to them all ambition, cruelty, avarice, revenge, are all founded on lust.” Now if there is one thing that I can’t abide in these celebrity soaked times, it is the celebrity sex scandal. Unfortunately, at this current time in the U.K., we can’t escape them

Especially when it seems to be a repeat performance emanating from the Kings Road in West London with a tiresome familiarity. Here we are, on the cusp of a World Cup, England’s overrated golden generation’s last chance to justify the guff, spin and marketing spiel that has surrounded them for the last decade. Just when it seemed the correct manager was in place to finally pull these egotistical bottlers to heel and create a side that finally delivered, we discover that several of them just can’t behave.

Now, I’m of the opinion that Ashley Cole is the best left back in world football, by quite some considerable distance, yet he’s such an unlikable character that it’s difficult to keep your personal view of him from tainting that fact. If there was ever a poster boy for what happens when you blow smoke up some one’s backside, throw money at them and allow them to behave as the wish with no thought of the consequences, then Ashley’s the result.

That animosity towards Cole probably began with his very ill advised autobiography, back in 2006 and one particular quote. “When I heard Jonathan Barnett (Cole’s agent) repeat the figure of £55K, I nearly swerved off the road. He (former Arsenal Director David Dein) is taking the piss Jonathan! I yelled down the phone. I was so incensed. I was trembling with anger. I couldn’t believe what I’d heard.”

Swapping North London for West London in an undercover deal that was sprung in a restaurant didn’t help either and saw William Gallas swap places for Cole. It seems if you constantly give Cole the sensible option or the detached from reality option, he will always go for the latter much to everyone’s chagrin. Like a moody teenager, Cole seems to be his own worst enemy, creating a personality so loathed that the media queue up to take pop shots at him.

Now, I’m not spinning this tale out due to his wife’s unfeasible success here in the U.K., as it seems she is now held up as the nations sweetheart somehow, but if all this off field nonsense was bad enough, Cole fractured his ankle two weeks ago and faces a race to be fit for the World Cup. Recovery from injury is a tough enough ask, but when you’re faced with both a 15 week window, if not less, to prove his fitness and an impending and very costly divorce, life for young Ashley couldn’t be worse.

Of course, the irony in all this is that one of his dalliances has been outed as an employee of Liverpool F.C. and one lets out a sigh of inane boredom by the sheer stupidity of the situation, entirely of Cole’s own making. Capello has got England playing their best football in years, giving them a swagger and a confidence that had been completely destroyed under the dark 15 months of Steve Mclaren’s reign. I’m not angry that Cole’s cheated on his wife for what seems like the umpteenth time, I’m angry that he’s been stupid enough to put Englands chances of winning the World Cup in jeopardy.

Yes, he may have not got there through injury, but we needed our best team to be completely focused on his football. It seems being married to a pop star, earning £110,000 per week and playing for Chelsea and England simply isn’t enough to keep this mans mind on his game. Going on current form, I doubt he’s got much of mind to use, but still, its like the lunatics have taken over the asylum. It seems that England’s chances are being derailed by the behavior of certain players detached from the position they hold in country’s psyche. Grow up the lot of you, the joke isn’t funny anymore.

In the annals of Arsenal’s history, one name conjures images of a bygone era, baggy shorts and a dead eye for goal. In the record books, his name still stands alone for the most goals scored in one season, with 44 in the 1934-35 season. In the modern era, first Ian Wright and then Thierry Henry surpassed his overall record but that shouldn’t overshadow Drake’s achievements for Arsenal.

Drake was born in Southampton in 1912 and was an adept sportman through his schooldays excelling at cricket and football, though when he left school he became a gas meter reader. A chance to play regular non league football for Winchester Town came along, and Drake took the opportunity with both hands, whilst continuing the meter reading! After two goal filled seasons, in 1931 Southampton came calling and Drake returned to his home town team.

Drake’s first season saw him become accustomed to the hustle and bustle of Second Division football but by the end of his first season, he’d got 7 goals and had established himself as Southampton’s main striker. The Saints were a poor side and even with Drake’s goalscoring prowess, the highest they finished whilst he was at the club was 12th, nowhere near promotion. Drake’s first season had caught the eye of the legendary Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman and he made an attempt to sign him in the summer of 1933 but Drake didn’t want to move that far north!

That first full season had seen him plunder 20 league goals and after turning down Arsenal’s advances, Drake hit the ground running in the 1933-34 season. He scored 8 goals in his first 5 games and continued in the same vein eventually getting 22 goals before Arsenal came back in for him in March 1934. This time, frustrated by the lack of progress Southampton were making and with the club facing financial difficulties, Drake moved to Highbury for £6,500.

Arsenal were top and Drake continued to score goals, hitting another 7 in the 10 games he played for the Gunners but missed out on a League Championship medal through lack of appearances. He was to get his hands on one the following season though and hit 42 league goals in 41 games, with 3 hatricks and 4 four goal hauls in his stats for the season setting a record that still stands today.

The following season Drake continued to hit the goals and on December 14th 1935 he set another record when he hit 7 against Aston Villa in a 7-1 rout. Incredibly, he also had another goal chalked off as it cannoned off the crossbar, bounced over the line and back out but the referee didn’t see it.

What makes Drake’s record for the Gunners even more remarkable was that he constantly battled injury problems throughout his career, especially a niggling back injury that would catch up with him at the end of his career. Yet Drake continued to push himself through the pain barrier to make Highbury his hunting ground and whilst Cliff Bastin mesmerised opponents with his wonderful ball skills, Drake would punish any lapses in the penalty area.

Drake was rewarded with his fine form with being called up for England and scored 6 goals in 5 appearances, injuries curtailing his opportunities to represent his country more than just a handful of times. He made his debut in the game that became known as the “Battle of Highbury” against Italy in November 1934, one of an incredible 7 Arsenal players to start the game. Typically, Drake scored the winner in a bad tempered 3-2 win.

As the decade continued, Drake finished as Arsenal’s top scorer in 5 consecutive seasons, as Arsenal continued to be the dominant force in English pre-war football. Between 1931 and 1939, Arsenal’s lowest position was 6th in the 1935-36 season, but they managed to win the F.A Cup with a 1-0 win over Sheffield United. Guess who scored the winning goal. Another League Championship medal came along in the 1937-38 season as Arsenal pipped Wolves by one point.

As with most of his contemparies, Drake’s career was stopped dead in its tracks with the outbreak of World War Two in September 1939 aged just 27. Drake went to serve in the RAF but continued to play for Arsenal in wartime fixtures. On the resumption of League football, Drake was injured against Reading and was forced to retire from playing. Despite this set back he took over as manager of non-league Hendon in 1946, moving to Reading in 1947 were after 5 seasons, Chelsea came calling.

Upon his arrival, he completely revamp the club, who were classed as London’s poorer side. Changing the badge, the motto, the kit and the club’s philosphy for big signings who continually failed to deliver, he used his knowledge of the lower leagues to sign the quality of player that Chelsea needed. As his team knitted, Chelsea became a force to be reckoned with and won the league in 1955 shocking the two titans, Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers. With it, Drake became the first person to win the league as a manager and a player.

It was as good as it got for Drake as Chelsea amazingly didn’t finish in the top ten again that decade and in 1961 he was removed from his position as manager. He continued to keep involved with football, having spells as Assistant Manager at Fulham and Barcelona under Vic Buckingham. He continued to love football and would often travel to all the clubs in London, for the simple pleasures of just enjoying watching football.

Drake passed away on May 30th 1995, aged 82.

• Scored 139 goals in 186 full appearances for Arsenal from 1934 – 1939
• Two League Championship medals 1934-35 & 1937-38
• One F.A. Cup Winners medal 1935-36
• 5 Appearances for England, scoring 6 goals
• First man to win League title as a player and manager
  
• Scored 7 goals in one match against Aston Villa on December 14th 1935
• Arsenals top scorer in every season from 1934-1935 until 1938-39
• Became Life President of Fulham
• Played County Cricket for Hampshire from 1931 until 1937
  

Highbury, one of the most remarkable grounds in the history of English football, will never be forgotten by the millions of people who have experienced a match inside its hallowed walls.

For those of you who want to go down memory lane, whether you’ve visited the ground or not, watch the following video that captures the beauty of Arsenal’s ground, which was their home from 1913 to 2006.

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