IRELAND’S DAVID MEYLER is happy for Hull City to take the underdog tag into their FA Cup final with Arsenal.
The Tigers will contest the competition’s showcase match for the first time in their 110-year history when they meet the Gunners at Wembley on 17 May having seen off Sheffield United in the semi-finals.
With the Premier League title now beyond them, Arsene Wenger will be desperate to end the club’s nine-year run without a trophy and the Londoners will be heavy favourites going into the game after winning 3-0 when the sides met last week.
Midfielder Meyler, who scored at Wembley earlier this month, is hoping to earn a place in Steve Bruce’s starting XI along with international team-mates Stephen Quinn and, possibly, Robbie Brady if he prove his fitness.
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“It’s a cup final in front of 80,000 people and Arsenal haven’t won a trophy in nine years so the pressure is on them to come out and beat us,” said Meyler, speaking at yesterday’s launch of the eFlow FAI Summer Soccer Schools at the Aviva Stadium.
“We’re the underdogs but we have got a great chance. They’ve beaten us 3-0 at home and 2-0 away but that doesn’t matter as it’s a one-off game and I’m quite confident that we can win.
“But we’ll start looking at it on the 12 May after Everton at home. We’ve got four league games before that and we have to focus on them.”
Steve Bruce locks horns with Arsene Wenger in the FA Cup final. Nigel French
Nigel French
Bruce, who gave Meyler his chance at Sunderland before bringing him to the KC Stadium, has done a terrific job since taking over in 2012. Singing his manager’s praises, Meyler added:
“For anyone to even say that the manager wasn’t a good manager should be laughed at because he has done a fantastic job for us. People forget that at Sunderland he did a very good job and we finished tenth with the highest tally of points ever.
“At Hull he took a team who were 55/1 and got them promoted and now a team that were odds on to get relegated he has kept them in it.
“We’re 14th at the moment with a game in hand and if we win that we can jump to 11th. You look at the job he has done this year and last year and it’s fantastic.
“We’ve got Fulham on Saturday. They are fighting for their lives and they will think they can beat us but I think we can beat them.”
Meyler 'confident' that Hull can stage an FA Cup final shock against Gunners
IRELAND’S DAVID MEYLER is happy for Hull City to take the underdog tag into their FA Cup final with Arsenal.
The Tigers will contest the competition’s showcase match for the first time in their 110-year history when they meet the Gunners at Wembley on 17 May having seen off Sheffield United in the semi-finals.
With the Premier League title now beyond them, Arsene Wenger will be desperate to end the club’s nine-year run without a trophy and the Londoners will be heavy favourites going into the game after winning 3-0 when the sides met last week.
Midfielder Meyler, who scored at Wembley earlier this month, is hoping to earn a place in Steve Bruce’s starting XI along with international team-mates Stephen Quinn and, possibly, Robbie Brady if he prove his fitness.
“It’s a cup final in front of 80,000 people and Arsenal haven’t won a trophy in nine years so the pressure is on them to come out and beat us,” said Meyler, speaking at yesterday’s launch of the eFlow FAI Summer Soccer Schools at the Aviva Stadium.
“We’re the underdogs but we have got a great chance. They’ve beaten us 3-0 at home and 2-0 away but that doesn’t matter as it’s a one-off game and I’m quite confident that we can win.
“But we’ll start looking at it on the 12 May after Everton at home. We’ve got four league games before that and we have to focus on them.”
Bruce, who gave Meyler his chance at Sunderland before bringing him to the KC Stadium, has done a terrific job since taking over in 2012. Singing his manager’s praises, Meyler added:
“For anyone to even say that the manager wasn’t a good manager should be laughed at because he has done a fantastic job for us. People forget that at Sunderland he did a very good job and we finished tenth with the highest tally of points ever.
“At Hull he took a team who were 55/1 and got them promoted and now a team that were odds on to get relegated he has kept them in it.
“We’re 14th at the moment with a game in hand and if we win that we can jump to 11th. You look at the job he has done this year and last year and it’s fantastic.
“We’ve got Fulham on Saturday. They are fighting for their lives and they will think they can beat us but I think we can beat them.”
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All-Ireland Senior HC FA Cup David Meyler final day Arsenal Hull City Wembley Stadium