FA Cup Final: Arsenal V Aston Villa Live – Wenger’s Winners To Retain Crown

FA Cup Final: Arsenal V Aston Villa
Saturday 30th May. 5:30PM. BBC One

The English league season may be over but there’s still one more crucial battle to be had at Wembley as Premiership rivals Arsenal and Aston Villa collide in this year’s FA Cup final.

Arsene Wenger’s side will be confident about defending the trophy won 12 months ago with a dramatic 3-2 win over Hull, but Tim Sherwood’s Villans have sparkled since the former Tottenham man’s appointment and will be quietly confident about securing the perfect end to a successful second half of the campaign.

It should be an explosive contest.

[quote_center]Get a free £20 bet for the FA Cup Final when you join Sky Bet today[/quote_center]

Gunners Firepower Too Much For Underdogs

[quote_right]A win for Arsenal would make them the most frequent winners in FA Cup history with 12 victories. [/quote_right]After a disappointing few weeks, Arsenal bounced back to winning ways in emphatic style with a thumping 4-1 win over West Brom on the Premier League’s final day. Wenger’s men will be hoping to use that momentum, along with their recent dominance over the Villans to maximum impact at Wembley.

Theo Walcott’s hat-trick gives Wenger a real selection headache as the Gunners have a number of attacking players all itching for a starting berth in the final. Regardless of which players get the nod, the favourites will be expecting to add to the eight goals already scored against Villa this term.

The holders have a strong reputation in this competition under Wenger’s guidance, having rebuilt their confidence with an 11 game winning streak in this tournament. With the added incentive of becoming the most frequent winners in FA Cup history with a 12th victory, the impetus has to be with the Gunners.

Arsenal hold all the aces. If their star-studded squad can cope with the occasion, then we’d expect them to utilise the large playing surface with their superior passing in order to lift the trophy.

Can Tim’s Villans Become Heroes At Wembley?

Aston Villa, who last reached the final in the last ever final to be held at the old Wembley, have worked magic to reach the final, securing their place here by ending Steven Gerrard’s hopes of a dream Liverpool send off, and Sherwood’s men have to believe that fate is on their side.

The Villans didn’t end the Premier League season too well, losing their last two fixtures of the campaign, but confidence is high after beating the drop and the new manager has certainly instilled a new sense of belief into the squad, especially in its attacking department.

Helping Christian Benteke rediscover his form is a major triumph for Sherwood but he has also encouraged the likes of Tom Cleverley and Fabian Delph into adding goals to their games. Villa now carry a much stronger attacking threat and a strong start could really plant a few doubts into the Arsenal mindset.

Villa obviously enter this year’s final as the underdogs but they’ve shown their resilience on a number of occasions during Sherwood’s short tenure so don’t be too surprised if they give the Gunners a real test.

It should be a thrilling final!

FA Cup Final Betting Tips

Holders Arsenal are heavy favourites to retain the cup and are priced just 4/7 to complete the job in 90 minutes with Bet365. Aston Villa have caused upsets this season, though, and could tempt some punters at 5/1. Alternatively, you could back extra-time by backing a draw at 3/1.

The head-to-head form might not count for too much but an aggregate Premier League scoreline of 8-0 in favour of Arsenal should not be overlooked and we think that dominance serves as a barometer of how things will develop at Wembley.

Arsenal will be eager to win this with ease following their previous scares at Wembley. We’re backing them to use the momentum of last week’s hammering of West Brom to maximum impact.

[quote_center]Tip: HT/FT: Arsenal/Arsenal @ 13/10 with Paddy Power[/quote_center]

The Gunners are blessed with a far greater number of potential scorers and we definitely fancy them to open the scoring.

Out of those potential candidates, we’re picking Cazorla as value. Let’s hope Santi makes Christmas come early for Arsenal and for us!

[quote_center]Tip: Santi Cazorla to score first @ 15/2 with Paddy Power[/quote_center]