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Where are they now: The Arsenal team which faced Bayern Munich in 2001

If the trend of recent seasons continues, Arsenal won't have to look too far beyond their upcomin...



Where are they now: The Arsena...
Soccer

Where are they now: The Arsenal team which faced Bayern Munich in 2001

If the trend of recent seasons continues, Arsenal won't have to look too far beyond their upcoming Champions League tie against Bayern Munich.

Under Arsene Wenger, the Gunners have been accustomed to qualifying for the group stages year after year and not since 1999-2000, when they finished third in their group, have they missed out on getting out of their opening group.

But a frustrating type of consistency has set in over recent seasons. 

The 2010-11 season was the first of six Champions League tournaments in a row in which Arsenal were knocked out at the first knockout stage.

And it will be seven if Bayern overcome them home and away at the same stage this season.

The 2000-01 season was the first one in which they made it out of the group stage intact and that season they eventually got as far as the quarter finals when finalists Valencia edged them out.

But that campaign also had a second group stage after the opening one. Arsenal were drawn against Bayern,, Lyon and Spartak Moscow, eventually just about qualifying in second place.

Their final second round group match was against Bayern when Arsenal went down 1-0 after a Giovanni Elber goal at the old Munich Olympiastadion.

So where are the members of the starting lineup now? Of course, many of them remain at the forefront on our TV screens.

David Seaman 

The former England and Arsenal goalkeeper is now 53 and has been keeping himself busy outside of football since he retired in 2004.

That includes a spell on Dancing On Ice All Stars in 2014 when he was the third celebrity contestant eliminated, having qualified for that series after originally taking part in 2006. 

Lee Dixon

A familiar figure on our screens as a pundit and co-commentator with the likes of ITV and NBC. The former right back retired after winning the league and cup double in 2002 at the age of 38. 

Patrick Vieira

A future club captain and leader during the Invincible season of 2004, Vieira is now head coach of Major League Soccer Franchise New York City FC.

In his debut season, the World Cup and European Championship winner led New York to the Eastern Conference semi finals.

Tony Adams

Mr Arsenal himself retired in 2002 at the same time as Dixon and has tried his hand at management and coaching over the years, with limited impact at Portsmouth and Wycombe Wanderers, as well as abroad at Gabala FK in Azerbaijan. 

More recently, the 50 year old took on the role of sports director at Chinese club Chongqing Lifan.

Robert Pires

The former winger only retired as a player in 2015 and he's a familiar presence on the Arsenal training ground. Currently he is coaching back at Arsenal under Arsene Wenger. He has ambitions of becoming Arsenal sporting director someday.

Freddy Ljungberg

Another former Arsenal legend back at the club is the ex-Sweden international, who has been working with the club's under-15 setup as a coach since last year.

Lauren

The former full back and Invincible recently sat down for an interesting and in-depth chat with Sid Lowe in The Guardian

The ex-Cameroon international is now an ambassador for Arsenal. 

Thierry Henry

As everyone knows given his ubiquitous presence on our screens at weekends, he is one of Sky Sports' punditry team alongside the likes of Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher.

But he is now combining that lucrative role with the position of Belgium assistant manager under former Everton manager Roberto Martinez.

Gilles Grimandi 

The former defender remains involved with Arsenal and is their chief scout in his homeland of France. 

Nwankwo Kanu

The Nigerian runs the Kanu Heart Foundation which provides life saving surgery for children suffering from heart defects.

Ashley Cole

The academy graduate is not a popular figure with the fanbase after leaving for Chelsea. He is in the twilight of his playing career and is at MLS side Los Angeles Galaxy. 

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