Exclusive: Joe Jacobson reveals the "powerful" Arsenal star who was a nightmare to play against | OneFootball

Former Wycombe Wanderers stalwart revealed the toughest opponent of his career when speaking exclusively with Football League World

Wycombe Wanderers legend Joe Jacobson faced off against many difficult opponents across a storied EFL career, but according to the man himself, none offered a stiffer test than Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain many years ago.

The Cardiff-born defender is regarded as a modern-day icon at Adam's Park, having made exactly 400 appearances for the Chairboys between 2014 and 2024.

A refined set-piece taker and goal threat from left-back, Jacobson scored 44 times for Wycombe and found the back of the net on 11 occasions from just 33 games in a standout 2019/20 campaign - which was postponed due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic - as his side clinched promotion to the Championship.

Having since retired, Jacobson can reflect on his career but particularly his time at Wycombe with extremely fond memories. However, there is one memory the now-38-year-old would perhaps like to forget in a sense.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was Joe Jacobson's toughest opponent in Arsenal v Shrewsbury Town tie

Although Jacobson spent the bulk of his career with Wycombe, he experienced his toughest opponent while playing for Shrewsbury Town.

That came during a 2011 EFL Cup tie between Arsenal and Shrewsbury at the Emirates Stadium, where Jacobson was subjected to a tough evening in the capital by Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Then aged just 18, Oxlade-Chamberlain was making only his first-ever start for Arsenal after signing from Southampton, but made an instant impression by getting on the scoresheet in an eventual 3-1 win over Shrewsbury and tormenting Jacobson all evening.

Having since developed into a central midfielder, the now-31-year-old was a tricky and direct winger at the time and proved an unforgettable opponent for Jacobson

"I've been very fortunate to play with some top, top Premier League and world class players in cup games and things like that," Jacobson explained when speaking exclusively to Football League World.

"But the toughest game I ever had was against Arsenal in the EFL Cup quite a few years ago, and it was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's first start for Arsenal after moving from Southampton.

"He was a really direct right-winger at the time and being a left-back on that big pitch at the Emirates was tough. He was just so direct, I think he had that youthful exuberance where he just wanted to press, get the ball, run at me and show how fast he was.

"He was so fast, so powerful and his delivery was very good. I just remember at the time thinking 'just stop running at me', and that was probably after half an hour of the game!

"We went 1-0 up, which probably didn't help us because it turned them on a little bit more and made them come even harder against us. That was a really, really tough evening.

Joe Jacobson faced notable opponents during his playing career

Jacobson has locked horns with a number of top-level opponents in years gone by. During his season in the Championship, he faced off against the likes of Antoine Semenyo, Anthony Gordon, Ivan Toney and Michael Olise.

Meanwhile, a chastening 6-1 EFL Cup defeat for Wycombe at Manchester City in 2021 saw Jacobson up against a front-three of Riyad Mahrez, Ferran Torres and Phil Foden.

There is no shortage of top-class talent there, that's for sure. But it's telling of just how impressive Oxlade-Chamberlain was on that evening in North London that he is still remembered as Jacobson's single toughest opponent.