For fans of the modern game, it is difficult to imagine a time when Arsenal and Nottingham Forest were chasing the same silverware. That is because modern football fans tend to think that the game began when the Premier League was formed in 1992, but Forest fans will remember a time long before that when they were one of the best clubs not just in England but in the world. In truth, the two sides weren’t really competing for the same trophies even when that was the case, mainly because of the fact that their periods of being in the ascendency didn’t occur at the same time as one another but were at different occasions.
In fact, there was only one season when the two teams were even remotely close when one of them was going for the title, which was in the 1988-1989 First Division campaign. Although Nottingham Forest finished third, it was really the battle with Liverpool that defined that season for Arsenal, given that the Gunners won the title in dramatic fashion on the final day. You would be hard-pushed to find anyone referring to this as any sort of major rivalry, with the clubs largely facing each other when they were in the same division. It took until 1979 for them to meet in the FA Cup, with Arsenal knocking Forest out on the way to winning the trophy.
Stunning the Gunners in the Cup
It is in the FA Cup where Nottingham Forest enjoyed one of their biggest and most surprising wins over Arsenal. There is also an argument that it was one of the final nails in the coffin of Arsène Wenger’s time in charge of the Gunners. The match took place on the seventh of January 2018 and was the fourth time that the two clubs had played one another in the famous old competition. Arsenal won that face meeting in 1979, with Forest getting their revenge thanks to a 2-1 win nine years later. A run-of-the-mill 2-0 win for the Gunners in 1993 was the final time that the faced each other prior to the 2018 clash that left Wenger reeling.
Quite what the most shocking aspect was of the defeat is something that is there to be debated between supporters of both clubs. For starters, Wenger had never lost an FA Cup third round match since taking over as Arsenal manager. Then there’s the fact that Nottingham Forest didn’t even have a manager at the time, with Mark Warburton having been sacked the week before. Another thing that is noteworthy is that Forest scored four times against the Gunners on their way to a 4-2 win over the London club in what would prove to be Arsene Wenger’s final FA Cup match in charge of the side that he’d won an impressive seven FA Cups with during his time there.
Arsenal’s Full Match History Against Nottingham Forest
Date | Home | Score | Away | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 Jan 2024 | Nottingham Forest | 1-2 | Arsenal | W | Premier League |
12 Aug 2023 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | Premier League |
20 May 2023 | Nottingham Forest | 1-0 | Arsenal | L | Premier League |
30 Oct 2022 | Arsenal | 5-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | Premier League |
09 Jan 2022 | Nottingham Forest | 1-0 | Arsenal | L | FA Cup |
24 Sep 2019 | Arsenal | 5-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | League Cup |
07 Jan 2018 | Nottingham Forest | 4-2 | Arsenal | L | FA Cup |
20 Sep 2016 | Nottingham Forest | 0-4 | Arsenal | W | League Cup |
16 Jan 1999 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | Premier League |
17 Aug 1998 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | Premier League |
08 Mar 1997 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | Premier League |
21 Dec 1996 | Nottingham Forest | 2-1 | Arsenal | L | Premier League |
10 Feb 1996 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | Premier League |
29 Aug 1995 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | Premier League |
21 Feb 1995 | Arsenal | 1-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | Premier League |
03 Dec 1994 | Nottingham Forest | 2-2 | Arsenal | D | Premier League |
21 Apr 1993 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | Premier League |
13 Feb 1993 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | FA Cup |
12 Jan 1993 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | League Cup |
17 Oct 1992 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | Premier League |
31 Mar 1992 | Arsenal | 3-3 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
08 Dec 1991 | Nottingham Forest | 3-2 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
20 Mar 1991 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
22 Sep 1990 | Nottingham Forest | 0-2 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
07 Mar 1990 | Arsenal | 3-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
16 Sep 1989 | Nottingham Forest | 1-2 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
11 Mar 1989 | Arsenal | 1-3 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |
06 Nov 1988 | Nottingham Forest | 1-4 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
12 Mar 1988 | Arsenal | 1-2 | Nottingham Forest | L | FA Cup |
26 Dec 1987 | Arsenal | 0-2 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |
12 Sep 1987 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
17 Mar 1987 | Arsenal | 0-0 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
21 Jan 1987 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | League Cup |
27 Sep 1986 | Nottingham Forest | 1-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
08 Apr 1986 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
26 Oct 1985 | Nottingham Forest | 3-2 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
13 Apr 1985 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
29 Aug 1984 | Nottingham Forest | 2-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
25 Feb 1984 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
22 Oct 1983 | Arsenal | 4-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
05 Mar 1983 | Arsenal | 0-0 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
23 Oct 1982 | Nottingham Forest | 3-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
17 Apr 1982 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
21 Nov 1981 | Nottingham Forest | 1-2 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
21 Feb 1981 | Nottingham Forest | 3-1 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
27 Sep 1980 | Arsenal | 1-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
05 May 1980 | Arsenal | 0-0 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
01 Dec 1979 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Arsenal | D | First Division |
26 Feb 1979 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | FA Cup |
13 Jan 1979 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
09 Sep 1978 | Nottingham Forest | 2-1 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
21 Jan 1978 | Nottingham Forest | 2-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
03 Sep 1977 | Arsenal | 3-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
01 Apr 1972 | Arsenal | 3-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
27 Dec 1971 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Arsenal | D | First Division |
13 Apr 1971 | Nottingham Forest | 0-3 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
03 Oct 1970 | Arsenal | 4-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
26 Dec 1969 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Arsenal | D | First Division |
23 Aug 1969 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
01 Feb 1969 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
16 Nov 1968 | Nottingham Forest | 0-2 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
23 Dec 1967 | Arsenal | 3-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
26 Aug 1967 | Nottingham Forest | 2-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
22 Apr 1967 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
26 Nov 1966 | Nottingham Forest | 2-1 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
14 Sep 1965 | Arsenal | 1-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
07 Sep 1965 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
13 Mar 1965 | Nottingham Forest | 3-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
06 Oct 1964 | Arsenal | 0-3 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |
07 Mar 1964 | Nottingham Forest | 2-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
26 Oct 1963 | Arsenal | 4-2 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
06 Apr 1963 | Arsenal | 0-0 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
17 Nov 1962 | Nottingham Forest | 3-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
07 Apr 1962 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
18 Nov 1961 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
31 Dec 1960 | Nottingham Forest | 3-5 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
27 Aug 1960 | Arsenal | 3-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
01 Sep 1959 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
26 Aug 1959 | Nottingham Forest | 0-3 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
04 Apr 1959 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Arsenal | D | First Division |
15 Nov 1958 | Arsenal | 3-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
21 Apr 1958 | Arsenal | 1-1 | Nottingham Forest | D | First Division |
09 Nov 1957 | Nottingham Forest | 4-0 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
27 Dec 1924 | Arsenal | 2-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
30 Aug 1924 | Nottingham Forest | 0-2 | Arsenal | W | First Division |
22 Mar 1924 | Arsenal | 1-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
15 Mar 1924 | Nottingham Forest | 2-1 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
10 Feb 1923 | Arsenal | 2-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
03 Feb 1923 | Nottingham Forest | 2-1 | Arsenal | L | First Division |
24 Apr 1915 | Arsenal | 7-0 | Nottingham Forest | W | Second Division |
18 Nov 1914 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Arsenal | D | Second Division |
07 Mar 1914 | Nottingham Forest | 0-0 | Woolwich Arsenal | D | Second Division |
01 Nov 1913 | Woolwich Arsenal | 3-2 | Nottingham Forest | W | Second Division |
25 Feb 1911 | Woolwich Arsenal | 3-2 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
22 Oct 1910 | Nottingham Forest | 2-3 | Woolwich Arsenal | W | First Division |
02 Mar 1910 | Nottingham Forest | 1-1 | Woolwich Arsenal | D | First Division |
09 Oct 1909 | Woolwich Arsenal | 0-1 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |
20 Mar 1909 | Woolwich Arsenal | 1-2 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |
14 Nov 1908 | Nottingham Forest | 0-1 | Woolwich Arsenal | W | First Division |
14 Mar 1908 | Nottingham Forest | 1-0 | Woolwich Arsenal | L | First Division |
16 Nov 1907 | Woolwich Arsenal | 3-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
02 Apr 1906 | Woolwich Arsenal | 3-1 | Nottingham Forest | W | First Division |
25 Nov 1905 | Nottingham Forest | 3-1 | Woolwich Arsenal | L | First Division |
27 Dec 1904 | Nottingham Forest | 0-3 | Woolwich Arsenal | W | First Division |
22 Oct 1904 | Woolwich Arsenal | 0-3 | Nottingham Forest | L | First Division |