It's not the first time
The two previous finals did not follow their prevailing prematch narrative. In 2017, Chelsea headed into the FA Cup showpiece having won the Premier League under Antonio Conte, amassing 18 points more than Arsenal, who finished outside the top four for the first time since taking charge in 1996.
They faced a crisis at centre-back, too, with Shkodran Mustafi, Gabriel and Laurent Koscielny, meaning Per Mertesacker was drafted in to anchor a back three despite playing just 37 minutes all season. Yet Mertesacker was man of the match and Arsenal won 2-1 in extra-time.
Similarly, last year's Europa League final appeared to be an even contest, perhaps edged by Arsenal given the disarray at Stamford Bridge. Eden Hazard was leaving for Real Madrid, Maurizio Sarri was about to depart as head coach and N'Golo Kante limped out of the final training session in Baku through injury. Yet Kante started, Hazard starred and Sarri marked his final game in charge with a comfortable 4-1 victory on a night.
Arsenal needed to win that night to secure Champions League qualification after missing out in the league, with Chelsea already satisfied in that regard
Europa League Qualification for Arsenal
This weekend, the Gunners must triumph to secure Europa League football next term. It is a sign of the magnitude of the task Mikel Arteta has at Arsenal that they have fallen so far, now charged with defeating a team who look resurgent under Frank Lampard.
These two clubs have a recent history so intertwined that Saturday's match is packed with intriguing subplots, any or all of which could prove decisive.
Goalkeeping conundrum
Then-Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger took a significant risk by playing his backup goalkeeper in the 2017 final. David Ospina was palpably inferior to Petr Cech, but Wenger stuck by the Colombian and was vindicated.
By 2019, Cech's involvement in the Europa League final was highly questionable. Bernd Leno had enjoyed an impressive first season and was clearly the future. Nobody could ever doubt Cech's professionalism, but was it more sentiment than pragmatism that led him to start the final match of his career against the club he had won everything with?
In the end, it didn't matter as Chelsea ran out easy winners regardless, but once again the goalkeeping position for both sides has been a central part of the build-up.
Emiliano Martinez has deputized for the injured Leno with surprising consistency, but this is by far the biggest game of his career. The Argentine spoke movingly this week about his journey, stating with conviction that his time had come, so much so that his approach to contract talks over his future will involve a reticence to return to being a backup for Leno next season.
Meanwhile, Kepa Arrizabalaga's future is increasingly uncertain after he was dropped for Chelsea's final day Premier League victory over Wolves, with Lampard unconvinced the 25-year-old is capable of being the club's long-term No. 1. Willy Caballero is expected to start at Wembley having played at every stage bar the fifth-round win over Liverpool. Therefore, it's possible Kepa may have played his last game for the club, a statement that also applies to Willian, who has been linked with a move to Arsenal.
Whatever happens this weekend, these two London rivals continue to prove the adage that you keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.
- Saturday marks the 21st FA Cup meeting and third FA Cup final meeting between Arsenal and Chelsea. Arsenal leads the head-to-head series 9-5-6 (W-L-D) including both previous final meetings in 2016-17 (2-1) and 2001-02 (2-0). In 200 all-time meetings between both sides in all comps, Arsenal leads the series with 76 wins (65 for Chelsea) and 59 draws.
Via:ESPN
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