FA Cup final: Arsenal 4-0 Aston Villa - 5 Talking Points
Aston Villa’s Wembley moment was blown to the pieces by Arsenal who thumped them 4-0. The Gunners retain the FA Cup, first time since 2002/03 season. Goals from Theo Walcott, Alexis Sanchez, Per Mertesacker and Olivier Giroud were enough for Arsene Wenger’s boys to retain the gold.
This triumph made them the most successful team in the history of the competition as they won it for the 12th time. The North London club outclassed their opponents in all departments as Wenger won his 6th FA Cup title.
Here are the five talking points from this lopsided tie:
5. Tim Sherwood gets it all wrong
It was a day when nothing went right for Tim Sherwood and his boys. From dreadful defending to muddles in midfield, everything was simply awful for the Villans. It was the flawed approach from the Midlands club which undid them.
Villa’s tactic of outmuscling Arsenal backfired severely as they were left chasing shadows for most of the game. The incessant fouls and sluggishness in build up play did them no favours at all as Arsenal’s guile and pace put them to the sword.
Aston Villa’s failure to stretch the game wide via their wide players was also a telling factor in this thrashing. None of the players in the Claret and Blue can hold their heads high after tonight’s display as they were simply awful at best. Christian Benteke was another huge letdown for Villa as he was nothing, but, impotent for the entire 90 minutes.
4. A successful debut season for Alexis
Alexis Sanchez was Arsenal’s marquee signing of the season and he surely hasn’t disappoint anyone (except Arsenal’s opponents). The former Barcelona man scored 25 goals in his debut season in English football and also capped his season with an FA Cup winners’ medal.
In the final, he rose to the occasion by scoring a thunderbolt from outside of the box as he etched his name in the Wembley folklore. His performance tonight was pitch perfect as he bamboozled Aston Villa’s fullbacks, Allan Hutton in particular. He was absolutely dominant in the air as he rose highest to set up Theo Walcott’s screeching opener.
The comparisons with Thierry Henry are being drawn after his fruitful debut at the Emirates. It may be too early for such huge praise, but if he carries on with this sublime streak consistently every season, then nothing can stop him from emulating or even bettering the records of the legendary Frenchman.