New stadium wows Gunners fans

And while some fans described the move as heartbreaking before it happened, they8217;re thinking differently now they8217;ve had a chance to inspect facilities which get their first taste of action on Saturday with a tribute match between Arsenal and Ajax to mark the retirement of star striker Dennis Bergkamp.

Arsenal fan Steve Kell, who8217;s on the editorial staff of Gunflash 8211; reputedly soccer8217;s oldest fan-run magazine 8211; said it was a fitting way to open the new stadium.

8220;He8217;s the reason why we have the new stadium,8221; said Kell. 8220;When we signed him, it seemed to show our intent of what the club was and wanted to be. It was the difference between settling for mid-table mediocrity and challenging for Premier Leagues and Champions Leagues.8221;

Bergkamp spent 11 years at Highbury, becoming one of the greatest players in the club8217;s illustrious history, and helping the team to three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and last season8217;s Champion League final.

Such was the club8217;s success that demand for tickets far outstripped supply, forcing the club to build a new home costing 712 million.

8220;I had a look around the place and sent a text to a friend 8211; I have to say it had an expletive in it. I was stunned,8221; said Kell, who8217;s also on the committee of the Arsenal supporters club. I8217;ve been all around Europe following the team and this stadium is a class apart. If anyone can find fault with the stadium, they know more than I do.8221;

Arsenal are by far the biggest English club to have switched to a new stadium in recent years, following the likes of Middlesbrough, Leicester and Southampton since the formation of the Premier League in 1992.

8220;It has been seven years since the club first announced the initial plans for the new stadium but I8217;m sure the fans will agree it has been worth the wait,8221; manager Arsene Wenger said.

8220;It is a fitting tribute that the first match at Emirates Stadium and a new chapter in the club8217;s history gets underway with a match in honour of a true Arsenal legend.8221;

At13.9 million, Bergkamp was English soccer8217;s most expensive overseas player, and his success in the physical, fast-paced English league helped persuade the likes of Thierry Henry to join.

8220;I have always said Dennis Bergkamp will remain the best partner I have ever had,8221; Henry said. 8220;He is a dream for a striker. He is not greedy. Sometimes you have players who do not have to talk, you just have to watch them 8211; and that is the case with Dennis.8221;

The 54,000 Arsenal fans who bought tickets for Saturday8217;s game know it8217;s their last chance to see the former Dutch star in action.

The field is wider than the one at Highbury 8211; which will have 700 luxury apartments woven into the old facades and a garden square replacing the pitch.

Wenger said Arsenal8217;s young team was in such good form at the end of last season -eliminating Real Madrid and Juventus from the Champions League and winning eight of the last 11 league games 8211; that, had the season started in February, it would have been challenging Chelsea for the Premier League title.

With the players and fans inspired by the backdrop of the new stadium, Kell wouldn8217;t be surprised to see it happen this time around.

8220;Unlike most new stadiums, there8217;s no blank concrete. It8217;s all glass and marble,8221; Kell said.

8220;When you enter the Bernabeu at Real Madrid, you get that 8217;wow8217; effect, and you definitely get it at Ashburton Grove too.8221;

Concrete stats

8226; It needed more than 9,300 construction workers.

8226; 55,000 cubic meters 1.9 million cubic feet of concrete.

8226; 15,000 square meters 161,459 square feet of glazing.

8226; More than 2,000 doors and 100 flights of stairs.

8226; More than 900 toilets and more than 370 m 1,214 feet of urinals.

STUART CONDIE