Editing Tony Adams (section)

=== 1983–1989: Early career and Anfield title ===
Adams signed for Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1980,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-15 |title=Tony Adams |url=https://www.arsenal.com/historic/players/tony-adams |access-date=2025-02-09 |website=www.arsenal.com |language=en}}</ref> and made his first-team debut on 5 November 1983 against [[Sunderland A.F.C.|Sunderland]], aged 17.<ref name=":1">Maidment (2008), p. 54.</ref><ref name="highs" /> He accidentally put his shorts on back-to-front before the match. Then, with virtually his first touch of the ball during the game, he gave it away, leading to Sunderland's opening goal. He put the ball into the opponents' net, but the goal was disallowed.<ref name=":1" /> Adams became a regular player in the [[1986–87 in English football|1986–87 season]], winning his first major trophy that season when playing in the [[Football League Cup]] Final win over [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] at [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley]].<ref name="highs" />

On 1 January 1988, he became Arsenal captain at the age of 21,<ref name="greatest">{{cite web|url=http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/gunners-greatest-players-no-3.-tony-adams|title=Gunners' Greatest Players – 3. Tony Adams|author=Arsenal.com|work=Official Arsenal Website|date=5–19 May 2008|access-date=24 November 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212013429/http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/gunners-greatest-players-no-3.-tony-adams|archive-date=12 December 2008}}</ref> remaining as club captain for the next 14 years until his retirement.

Adams's strong discipline of the defence was considered a factor in Arsenal winning the [[Football League Cup|League Cup]] in [[1986–87 in English football|1986–87]] and then the [[Football League First Division|First Division]] championship twice; the first in [[1988–89 in English football|1988–89]] after a [[Liverpool 0–2 Arsenal (26 May 1989)|win]] over [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] in the final game of the season; the second in [[1990–91 in English football|1990–91]], losing once all season.