Arsenal football club won their fourteenth FA Cup title on Saturday after defeating their London rivals, Chelsea football club, 2-1 at the Wembley Stadium in London, England.
The North London club continued their dominance in the oldest tournament in club football history as they maintain their status as the most successful club in the tournament. With their FA Cup win over Chelsea on Saturday, the Gunners now have 6 more FA Cup titles than Chelsea and 4 more FA Cup titles than the second most successful club in the tournament, Manchester United.
Why Arsenal’s 14th FA Cup win is most important
Arsenal football club finished the 2019-2020 season on the 8th spot which meant that there would not be any European football for them in 2020-2021 season based on their standing on the league table. Hence, the only means to get back to Europe is to win the FA Cup.
On the other hand, Chelsea have qualified for the Champions League as they finished the season on the 4th spot which meant that they only needed to win the title for the sake of pride and the price money.
Based on this, Arsenal needed the title more than their rivals, so, the manager of the club, Mikel Arteta, and his men had to throw everything into the game to ground out the result. With what was at stake at the back of their mind, they successfully won their record 14th FA Cup title which has given them an automatic ticket into the group stage of the UEFA Europa League.
👋 Good morning…
— 🎗 Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 2, 2020
From your @EmiratesFACup champions 🏆 pic.twitter.com/sTHveGJ5rT
More FA Cup record for Arsenal
With Arsenal’s win over Chelsea on Saturday, the Gunners have become the first club in the history of the tournament to win a particular club (Chelsea) in three different FA Cup finals – 2002, 2017 and 2020.
They have played in the final of the FA Cup a record 20 times, one more than Manchester United. They are also the first club in the tournament to win their 7 successive FA Cup final appearances from 2002 until date.
More so, Mikel Arteta, the manager of the club has become the first manager to win the title for Arsenal in his first season. The last manager that achieved this feat at the club was George Graham in 1986-1987 season.
Arteta is also the first known former Arsenal player to win the tournament as a player and also win as a coach for Arsenal.
Thank you everyone for being so supportive.We knew that there were expectations and this trophy is for you.There is still a long way to go of improving on many things,but I’m very proud of the fantastic players and the staff.Again, thank you so much for the support and belief pic.twitter.com/A4ejHMIfPZ
— Mikel Arteta (@m8arteta) August 1, 2020
It is a win for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been in the news over his uncertain future at the club. The contract of the 31-year-old Gabon forward will expire in June 2021 and there have been talks that he might not extend his stay at the club.
One of the reasons why Aubameyang has always wanted to leave according to reports is Arsenal’s inability to win a major title despite being among the top scorers in the league every season. Hence, prior to the FA Cup final, the manager of the club charged his team to win the title for their captain with the hope that it will encourage him to stay at the club for more seasons.
Our No 14.
— 🎗 Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 2, 2020
With No 14.
Goodnight, Gooners 👋 pic.twitter.com/tNbEEKHomz
What Arsenal’s FA Cup win Means to Wolves
Though Chelsea lost in the final to Arsenal, the club that will receive the news with more resentment is Wolves. The club finished on the 7th spot which naturally qualifies them for Europa League qualifying round next season.
But that would have only been possible if Chelsea had won Arsenal on Saturday. Since it is the other way round, Arsenal will replace them in the competition as the winners of the FA Cup. However, Arsenal will not play in the qualifying round of the tournament but they will go straight to the group stage while 6th placed Tottenham Hotspur will play in the qualifying round of the tournament.
This has left Wolves with the only option of winning this season Europe League as they are very much in the competition. They will host Olympiacos on August 6 for the second leg of the round of 16. The first leg ended 1-1. If they win the tournament, they will return to European football next season but will play in the Champions League instead.
What the win means to the Premier League
Arsenal’s FA Cup win is not for the Gunners and their fans alone but it is also for the Premier League as a whole. If Chelsea had won the final, the Premier League would have had only 7 representatives in Europe.
But now, the Premier League will have 8 representatives in Europe, thanks to Arsenal’s win. The Gunners will join Leicester City and Tottenham in Europa League. While Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Liverpool will play in the Champions League.
