Kevin Whitcher
Trophies. How they are won is ultimately not the thing. The main thing is that they are won. Arsenal have a tendency to put their supporters through torture to do it, and such was the case yesterday at Wembley.
The start was nothing short of a fiasco. The Arsenal players, for all the talk of not going into the game with any sense of complacency, were simply not at the races from the off. Hull were winning challenges, showing the greater desire and commitment. Wenger’s team have often been slow starters in matches, but on this occasion Hull took the initiative that the Gunners seemed to have no interest in seizing. Two early set piece goals were followed by a Kieran Gibbs header off the line. Arsenal were reeling. Only one team looked frozen by the occasion, overcome with nerves. The passing was awry, and with their noses well and truly in front, Hull had the option to retreat into their shell and focus on keeping a clean sheet rather than exploiting Arsenal’s poor beginning any further.
The selection of Fabianski over Szczesny was the big talking point of the game. The rest of the team, given the injury to Oxlade-Chamberlain, was fairly predictable. The keeper should arguably have done more to command his area, especially for the free kick that led to the second goal. It crossed my mind that the defence have more faith in Szczesny and that really, sentiment should play no part in team selection. For a final you pick the strongest team.
I also pondered why the team should be psychologically shot, as they appeared to be in the early stages. The one thing they have done this season is see off lesser teams. This was not Liverpool or Chelsea. Thoughts went back to the League Cup Final defeat against Birmingham three seasons ago, but only two of the players that started yesterday played any part in that game (Sagna and Koscielny).
Still, Arsenal sorted their act out and Cazorla scored a delightful free kick to give the fans something to cheer about, and early enough for nerves to be settled. What followed was Arsenal trying to break Steve Bruce’s team down and not making a particularly convincing job of it as so few genuine chances were fashioned. Passes were misplaced and when balls were played long to Olivier Giroud, he seemed to have little joy in winning his battles.
Hull, unsurprisingly, used up clock eating antics that provide an argument for football matches to revert to 60 minute basketball timing affairs. It was tedious, frustrating but also effective in disrupting any sense of rhythm Arsenal might have tried to develop.
The second half was a matter of hoping and waiting for the moment of breakthrough. With so much dominance, it had to come. The course of the game saw three cast iron Gunners penalties denied, I was informed via text message, although from my pew, the only one I felt certain of was one on Cazorla in the second half when he had his legs taken from him. As in the semi-final, Podolski was withdrawn so that the formation could revert to 4-4-2, although this time, it was Sanogo entering the fray to join Giroud rather than the other way round. It did strike me how little Arsene Wenger left the bench to issue instructions during the final. Perhaps he felt there was nothing he could add to proceedings for the most part. It was very strange.
Sanogo made life difficult for Hull’s defenders through his sheer physicality and pace if not his technique. He is a battering ram and looks highly unlikely to develop into another Anelka for the plain reason he can’t sort out his feet. The corner he won that led to the equalizer did not look like it should have been awarded, even in the stadium, but the Gunners were glad of the break, and Koscielny popped up with a key goal as he tends to from time to time. Hull can complain about the award of the corner, but that needs to be balanced against the three penalties Lee Probert refused to give. He was a referee afraid of giving the big decisions, and was too reluctant to issue cards in the earlier part of the game through fear of having to send someone off further down the line. All four goals in the final up to this point had been scored from set pieces. The Arsenal players gestured to the crowd to get behind the team more, although sometimes the supporters need something to feed off, and for long periods, there was precious little coming from events on the pitch.
It should have been wrapped up without the need for extra time, as Kieran Gibbs had an excellent chance to settle matters, but blasted the ball over the bar. The subs warmed up, and one wondered why fresh legs were not bought on after 75 minutes. When the changes did eventually come, they were the expected ones, with Wilshere and Rosicky replacing Cazorla and Ozil. The latter had a fairly anonymous game, symbolizing the difficulty his team had stringing a sequence of passes together once they got into the opposition half. It was a final of drama, but in fairness, neither team performed that well.
Extra time favoured the Gunners if only because they were territorially more likely to create something and Hull were reliant on their reserves of energy to prevent Arsenal’s approach being effective. Giroud was unlucky to hit the crossbar in the first period, but the introduction of fresh legs gave the team the extra energy and critically pace in their build up play to settle matters. Rosicky should have replaced Ozil far earlier. The winner was a classic Arsenal goal with the one touch play coming off and Aaron Ramsey hitting a sweet finish into the bottom corner of the net to send the Arsenal fans into delirium. It was fitting that the Welshman, the outstanding player of the season, should crown it by netting the winner.
Of course, Arsenal being Arsenal there was still had time to invoke heart attacks with Mertesacker’s slip, Fabianski’s failed attempt to beat the Hull’s Aluko to the ball and Kieran Gibbs coming perilously close to touching the shot across the goalmouth to score an OG. Given the number of attempts the Gunners had seen sail over the bar in the two hours, I really did not fancy the prospect of a penalty shoot-out. Fortunately, the whistle went soon after and the celebrations could begin in earnest.
The players showed how much winning something meant displaying as much ecstasy and indeed relief as the supporters. Stan Kroenke seemed to thouroughly enjoy sitting next to Prince William, which will hopefully give him the taste of how sweet silverware can be, as opposed to bank statements with large balances. I wonder if he will be on top of the team bus for the parade today? Directors sometimes are. The guy is around for the duration and if he can see what an impact winning trophies has, perhaps he will push the manager harder to use all available resources to increase the chances of more.
As for Arsene Wenger himself, what mattered is that his team were not once again the bridesmaids. There have been three losing finals since the last trophy and there was a feeling that a habit was developing. Would he have gone if Arsenal had lost? Who knows? However, he is staying for at least another two seasons so what matters is that past mistakes are not repeated. Whatever the differences between Arsenal supporters in their views, one thing we should all agree on is how good it feels to win trophies, because they are what shapes the club’s history. Another year will be added to the many celebrated on the ring around the stadium at Ashburton Grove. On that note, it was good to hear reports of a celebratory pitch invasion at the screening after the cup had been won. The fans were told to clear the pitch or the screen would be turned off, but the match was over and they were in party mood, so they stayed put and the club duly turned off the screen. You just have to hand it to stadium management for sensing the mood of the moment and doing their best to poop the party. Get a life. The season’s over and the pitch has almost three months to recover.
A word on Wembley. Real problems at Turnstile P. Some of the entrances worked fine. Some didn’t. So some queues moved quickly enough, but certainly on the two at the far right, there were problems with the electronic readers. I saw friends join a neighbouring queue after I had been in mine about five minutes and they entered about ten minutes before I did. Because I started queuing at 4.20, I did get to my seat by 4.50, but I am aware that many behind me did not get in until after the game started and a number were still taking their seats after five minutes had been played. A steward blamed the ticket printing, but identical tickets had no problems in other turnstiles. For a showpiece stadium only completed less than ten years ago, it was a complete shambles.
Still, at least everyone was in to see Arsenal’s goals and enjoy the outcome of a memorable day. Cup finals are special days when you end them victorious (and of course killers when you don’t), and fans celebrated long into the evening back in Islington on a gorgeous balmy early summer night. There will be a few hangovers this morning, and let’s hope there are cause for a few more before another nine years elapse.
Finally, a quick word on this season’s Gooner Survey. Normally, we get it online after the final game of the season has been played, but this year, it will be delayed by a few days. It should be online by Bank Holiday Monday in eight days’ time.
The current issue of The Gooner can be bought online here. It’s a 64 page special priced at £3 and includes an interview with Sol Campbell and special sections on the 10th anniversary of the Invincibles and Arsenal in the Cup Final.
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