ALAN DAVIES

The stand-up comedian and actor on meeting his cup final heroes - plus the best advice he received from Arsene Wenger...

- Nick Callow

What was the first game that you ever attended?

August 1971, I was five, against Stoke at Highbury. We lost 1-0. I just remember a strange smell and having never seen so many people in my life. I realised years later it was cigarette and cigar smoke. For me, that was the smell of a football ground - until I got into my teens and realised what cigarettes were. I remember trying an Embassy No.5 at a party, thinking, “This is the smell of Highbury... and White Hart Lane.” My dad and my brother were Tottenham fans, but my mum got me an Arsenal shirt and sewed a No.5 on the back. I wanted to be Frank McLintock - the captain. She also stitched the badge on the front. I’ve still got it. I used to be taken to White Hart Lane, but I wanted to go to Highbury. We'd just won the Double. My brother suggested I support Arsenal because he didn’t want me to support his team. Worked out well for me.

Who was your childhood hero and did you ever meet them?

Liam Brady. He broke our hearts when he went to Juventus in 1980. He was our best player when we won the FA Cup in ’79. I was 13, going to matches, but couldn't get a ticket for the final. Decades later, he organised a reunion lunch for that '79 team and asked me to compere it. I was falling over myself. After the lunch, we went to a bar with Alan Sunderland, Frank Stapleton and others - all legends of my childhood. They say, never meet your heroes - but for me, it was a brilliant day.

What's your favourite Arsenal goal?

Declan Rice’s first free-kick against Real Madrid in the Champions League feels like it should go straight in at No.1. How can you top it? A couple of Thierry Henry goals were pretty extraordinary. I also love Jack Wilshere's finish after a series of one-twos against Norwich. Tomas Rosicky scored a similar one. All peak Wenger - when we scored so many good goals.