It’s the biggest London derby of the year! A chance at redemption for a stuttering Arsenal side and for Chelsea it could be the icing on the cake of an already legendary season.
Arsenal are looking to salvage this season by winning their 3rd FA Cup in the last 4 years. Despite failing to finish in the Premier League top 4, Arsenal’s form has picked up of late as they have won 5 consecutive league games for the first time since October. A huge dip in form mid season saw the gunners drop out of the title race and ultimately out of the top 4 but having already swept aside Man City in the semi-final, they will feel confident heading into the final on the back of their recent results.
Arsenal do however have their two first choice centre backs missing for this tie, Laurent Koscielny receiving a straight red card in the game vs Everton and Gabriel suffering an injury in the same game. This makes way for Per Mertesacker who has not played much first team football recently. Alexis Sanchez also picked up a knock but the extent of his injury is not known yet.
Chelsea have had a magnificent season, they have become the first team to win 30 games in a 38 game league season. They must focus on getting another victory and another piece of silverware for a now overflowing trophy cabinet. Chelsea won’t be taking Arsenal for granted, despite beating them 3-1 last time the sides met they did lose 3-0 back in September. Since that loss though Antonio Conte has taken up a 3-4-3 formation that seems to have made his side almost unbeatable. Chelsea must enter the arena as strong favourites to win this tie, they look strong in every area of the pitch and have no serious injury worries for the week ahead.
Eden Hazard is back to his best and has had arguably his best season for Chelsea. There are goals throughout the entire team, with Pedro always capable of scoring a magical goal from nothing. Michy Batshuayi has recently hit some form despite only really being used as a substitute and provides his manager with another option to turn to if plan A isn’t working on the day.
It’s sure to be a fantastic cup final but the stakes are higher for Arsenal, some fans calling for the manager to leave may be placated by some cup silverware, however if Arsenal lose and lose heavily then things could go from bad to worse for Arsene Wenger and his team. Chelsea on the other hand can approach the game without fear, enjoy the occasion and the chance to cap off an already impressive season with one of the most famous trophies in football.
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