WEMBLEY PLAYS HOST to the FA Cup final this weekend between Arsenal and Aston Villa.
The Gunners will become the most successful side in the history of the tournament should they claim a second successive trophy, bringing their tally to 12 and moving ahead of Manchester United in the all-time winners’ table.
There are some key battles on the field as well as between two managers at the opposite ends of their respective careers…
Wenger’s selection headache
As seems to be the norm with any Arsenal side of the last 10 years, they appear to have all their players fit for the final four or five games each season, while many of them lie on the treatment table from November until April.
The North London side surely would have challenged for Premier League titles in recent years had they been blessed with a fully fit squad throughout the campaign.
Danny Welbeck is the only player to miss out through injury, but he may not have featured anyway.
Theo Walcott’s superb hat-trick against West Brom leaves him in contention for a starting berth alongside Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sánchez, but Wenger will not want to drop some of the players that have served him so well in recent months. To bring Walcott into the side, the Frenchman would most likely have to drop Mesut Ozil, and that is hard to imagine happening.
Will Theo Walcott play from the start on Saturday? Nick Potts
Nick Potts
Jack Wilshere stuck his hand up for a place in the side after a commanding performance against the Baggies in which he scored one of the goals of the season. It would be hard to imagine Francis Coqeulin or last year’s cup final hero, Aaron Ramsey, starting from the bench however.
In goals, Wenger must decide between Wojciech Szczesny and David Ospina. The Pole has been his FA Cup goalkeeper, but Ospina’s performances since he stepped into the number one spot have been more assured than anything Szczesny could offer previously.
How do Grealish and Villa get the best from Benteke?
Quite why Tim Sherwood decided to start Benteke against Burnley in the final day’s dead-rubber is a bit of a mystery. Maybe it has something to do with the fact it may be the Belgian’s last performance at Villa Park should he move on this summer. Maybe he was hoping the striker would knock in one or two goals to ensure he goes into the final in supreme confidence. Nevertheless, it is clear that Benteke is the integral to Villa’s hopes.
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Key to Benteke’s good run of late has been the support offered by the players behind him. Jack Grealish’s introduction to top-flight football has been seamless and he provides the ammunition for the big Belgian striker, while the pace of Charles N’Zogbia, Gabby Agbonlahor and Scott Sinclair (any of the three could start on the right) on the counter-attack ensures that Benteke is not left isolated up front.
Christian Benteke and Jack Grealish have struck up a good understanding. PA Wire / Press Association Images
PA Wire / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
Arsenal, meanwhile, will look for Héctor Bellerín and Kieran Gibbs to push up whenever possible, forcing the Aston Villa wingers to drop deeper and further away from their lone striker. This strategy represents hope for Villa — if they can get one of their pacey wingers in behind either full-back, they will likely have a straight path to goal. Wenger, though, will be acutely aware of this danger, so may err on the side of caution when using his full-backs.
Benteke will also be used as a decent out-ball for the Villains, as he should have the beating of Laurent Koscielny in the air and the pace to worry the slow-turning Per Mertesacker.
Can Giroud step up to the mark?
While the French striker has scored an impressive 17 goals this term, he has hardly managed to do it in the games that count and he is not a scorer of very important goals. Out of Giroud’s 17 goals this season, only in five games would it directly have mattered if he wasn’t to score them. Arsenal won by two goals or more or failed to win in the 13 other games he netted in.
The fact that he’s failed to find the net since the 4-1 win over Liverpool on 4 April doesn’t scream form either — he is a man under threat for his place. Wenger will surely stick with him, however, as it is Wenger’s blind loyalty that makes him likeable as a manager but also very foolish at times.
It's now 8 games since Giroud last found the net. EMPICS Sport
EMPICS Sport
As mentioned earlier, Theo Walcott is now a viable option to start and a decent alternative to Giroud, who is in there primarily for his hold-up play, as he has offered little else in recent weeks. There is no doubt that Giroud is a fine forward, but he isn’t in that very top bracket of forwards, in comparison to the likes of Aguero and Diego Costa.
A poor performance in the showpiece event on Saturday may finally see Wenger enter the transfer market for a ‘top top’ striker.
Will we see tactics from Tim or will it be a ‘gung-ho’ approach?
More than a few people struggled to take Tim Sherwood seriously while he was at Spurs, and critics also suspected he was more of a talker than a doer when he joined Villa, but he has continually defied his doubters since then.
When Sherwood took over at Villa Park, they were languishing in the relegation zone and had scored 12 goals in their previous 25 games, but the club have since managed 14 goals in their last nine games, with the resurgence of Benteke the biggest factor in that run. Everyone knew he would make Villa Park a little more fun, but his actual managerial skills were questioned.
Sherwood has brought excitement back to Villa's play. AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
Whatever Sherwood is doing has worked, however. The former Blackburn player’s constant elevation of his team’s abilities looks to be making the players themselves believe. Whether he’s touting Jack Grealish as the best young player in Europe, Benteke as the continent’s best striker or Tom Cleverley as England’s premier midfielder, the 46-year-old coach seems to have a unique way of inspiring confidence.
Sherwood insists he will go ‘toe to toe’ with the Gunners on Sunday, saying: “There’s no point shackling our [game plan] and keep taking it on the chin until you get knocked out. I don’t think our fans want to go there and watch that.”
Yet it would surely be naive for Sherwood to truly think his side can take Arsenal on at their own game, so he may be best advised to stay compact defensively and hurt Wenger’s men on the break with pace. It’s time to use all those tactics you spoke of last season, Tim.
Does two FA Cup wins represent progress for Arsenal?
Watching the Europa League final the other night and seeing both the elation and dejection of the Sevilla and Dnipro players when the final whistle was blown invited the question: would Arsenal fans rather an FA Cup win or a Europa League triumph?
The Europa League seems more of an after-thought in England, as big teams are primarily concerned with a top-four spot and that Champions League berth.
If Arsenal were dumped out at the Champions League group stages therefore, would they give the competition a fair whack? It is surely a more prestigious prize than the FA Cup at this stage.
Sanchez was part of last summer's major recruitment drive. Barrington Coombs
Barrington Coombs
Moreover, last season, Arsenal finished seven points off the top in the Premier league, amassing 79 points, in addition to winning the FA Cup. They spent €130 million on transfers since then and finished with 75 points, 12 points off Chelsea in first place this time around.
Should the Gunners lose the final on Saturday evening, this season must be seen as disappointing in the larger scheme of things. Rather than progression, they are stagnant, almost regressing.
Winning a trophy for the first time in nine years last season was a decent monkey to get off their back, but fans would have hoped for a stronger title push this year.
The same narrative will be used again this summer — ‘Arsenal are in a strong position to push for the title.’
That will be the line given by most experts before the season starts, and then we will probably question their ability to make the Champions League places in December, before cursing their bad injuries come mid-April, when they are playing sublime football and we will say they could have won the title if they had everyone fit.
A trophy such as the FA Cup is the only exceptional difference that can be made in what is becoming the never-ending tale of near misses for Arsenal.
Will Walcott start and 4 more talking points ahead of the FA Cup final
WEMBLEY PLAYS HOST to the FA Cup final this weekend between Arsenal and Aston Villa.
The Gunners will become the most successful side in the history of the tournament should they claim a second successive trophy, bringing their tally to 12 and moving ahead of Manchester United in the all-time winners’ table.
There are some key battles on the field as well as between two managers at the opposite ends of their respective careers…
Wenger’s selection headache
As seems to be the norm with any Arsenal side of the last 10 years, they appear to have all their players fit for the final four or five games each season, while many of them lie on the treatment table from November until April.
The North London side surely would have challenged for Premier League titles in recent years had they been blessed with a fully fit squad throughout the campaign.
Danny Welbeck is the only player to miss out through injury, but he may not have featured anyway.
Theo Walcott’s superb hat-trick against West Brom leaves him in contention for a starting berth alongside Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sánchez, but Wenger will not want to drop some of the players that have served him so well in recent months. To bring Walcott into the side, the Frenchman would most likely have to drop Mesut Ozil, and that is hard to imagine happening.
Jack Wilshere stuck his hand up for a place in the side after a commanding performance against the Baggies in which he scored one of the goals of the season. It would be hard to imagine Francis Coqeulin or last year’s cup final hero, Aaron Ramsey, starting from the bench however.
In goals, Wenger must decide between Wojciech Szczesny and David Ospina. The Pole has been his FA Cup goalkeeper, but Ospina’s performances since he stepped into the number one spot have been more assured than anything Szczesny could offer previously.
How do Grealish and Villa get the best from Benteke?
Quite why Tim Sherwood decided to start Benteke against Burnley in the final day’s dead-rubber is a bit of a mystery. Maybe it has something to do with the fact it may be the Belgian’s last performance at Villa Park should he move on this summer. Maybe he was hoping the striker would knock in one or two goals to ensure he goes into the final in supreme confidence. Nevertheless, it is clear that Benteke is the integral to Villa’s hopes.
Key to Benteke’s good run of late has been the support offered by the players behind him. Jack Grealish’s introduction to top-flight football has been seamless and he provides the ammunition for the big Belgian striker, while the pace of Charles N’Zogbia, Gabby Agbonlahor and Scott Sinclair (any of the three could start on the right) on the counter-attack ensures that Benteke is not left isolated up front.
Arsenal, meanwhile, will look for Héctor Bellerín and Kieran Gibbs to push up whenever possible, forcing the Aston Villa wingers to drop deeper and further away from their lone striker. This strategy represents hope for Villa — if they can get one of their pacey wingers in behind either full-back, they will likely have a straight path to goal. Wenger, though, will be acutely aware of this danger, so may err on the side of caution when using his full-backs.
Benteke will also be used as a decent out-ball for the Villains, as he should have the beating of Laurent Koscielny in the air and the pace to worry the slow-turning Per Mertesacker.
Can Giroud step up to the mark?
While the French striker has scored an impressive 17 goals this term, he has hardly managed to do it in the games that count and he is not a scorer of very important goals. Out of Giroud’s 17 goals this season, only in five games would it directly have mattered if he wasn’t to score them. Arsenal won by two goals or more or failed to win in the 13 other games he netted in.
The fact that he’s failed to find the net since the 4-1 win over Liverpool on 4 April doesn’t scream form either — he is a man under threat for his place. Wenger will surely stick with him, however, as it is Wenger’s blind loyalty that makes him likeable as a manager but also very foolish at times.
As mentioned earlier, Theo Walcott is now a viable option to start and a decent alternative to Giroud, who is in there primarily for his hold-up play, as he has offered little else in recent weeks. There is no doubt that Giroud is a fine forward, but he isn’t in that very top bracket of forwards, in comparison to the likes of Aguero and Diego Costa.
A poor performance in the showpiece event on Saturday may finally see Wenger enter the transfer market for a ‘top top’ striker.
Will we see tactics from Tim or will it be a ‘gung-ho’ approach?
More than a few people struggled to take Tim Sherwood seriously while he was at Spurs, and critics also suspected he was more of a talker than a doer when he joined Villa, but he has continually defied his doubters since then.
When Sherwood took over at Villa Park, they were languishing in the relegation zone and had scored 12 goals in their previous 25 games, but the club have since managed 14 goals in their last nine games, with the resurgence of Benteke the biggest factor in that run. Everyone knew he would make Villa Park a little more fun, but his actual managerial skills were questioned.
Whatever Sherwood is doing has worked, however. The former Blackburn player’s constant elevation of his team’s abilities looks to be making the players themselves believe. Whether he’s touting Jack Grealish as the best young player in Europe, Benteke as the continent’s best striker or Tom Cleverley as England’s premier midfielder, the 46-year-old coach seems to have a unique way of inspiring confidence.
Sherwood insists he will go ‘toe to toe’ with the Gunners on Sunday, saying: “There’s no point shackling our [game plan] and keep taking it on the chin until you get knocked out. I don’t think our fans want to go there and watch that.”
Yet it would surely be naive for Sherwood to truly think his side can take Arsenal on at their own game, so he may be best advised to stay compact defensively and hurt Wenger’s men on the break with pace. It’s time to use all those tactics you spoke of last season, Tim.
Does two FA Cup wins represent progress for Arsenal?
Watching the Europa League final the other night and seeing both the elation and dejection of the Sevilla and Dnipro players when the final whistle was blown invited the question: would Arsenal fans rather an FA Cup win or a Europa League triumph?
The Europa League seems more of an after-thought in England, as big teams are primarily concerned with a top-four spot and that Champions League berth.
If Arsenal were dumped out at the Champions League group stages therefore, would they give the competition a fair whack? It is surely a more prestigious prize than the FA Cup at this stage.
Moreover, last season, Arsenal finished seven points off the top in the Premier league, amassing 79 points, in addition to winning the FA Cup. They spent €130 million on transfers since then and finished with 75 points, 12 points off Chelsea in first place this time around.
Should the Gunners lose the final on Saturday evening, this season must be seen as disappointing in the larger scheme of things. Rather than progression, they are stagnant, almost regressing.
Winning a trophy for the first time in nine years last season was a decent monkey to get off their back, but fans would have hoped for a stronger title push this year.
The same narrative will be used again this summer — ‘Arsenal are in a strong position to push for the title.’
That will be the line given by most experts before the season starts, and then we will probably question their ability to make the Champions League places in December, before cursing their bad injuries come mid-April, when they are playing sublime football and we will say they could have won the title if they had everyone fit.
A trophy such as the FA Cup is the only exceptional difference that can be made in what is becoming the never-ending tale of near misses for Arsenal.
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‘The Jack Grealish situation doesn’t sit well with me’ – Alan McLoughlin
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Analysis Arsene Wenger Christian Benteke FA Cup Olivier Giroud Talking Points tim sherwood