Arsenal captain Pierre Emerick Aubameyang scored two goals either side of half time to overturn Christian Pulisic’s opening goal to defeat Chelsea and lead Arsenal to a record 14th FA Cup triumph.
Tumultuous season
In what has been a torrid season for the club, Arsenal finished the Premier League season in 8th place in the league table, almost missing out on Europa League qualification.
Their FA Cup triumph ensures they enter the Europa League group stages in lieu of Tottenham Hotspur, who find themselves dropped into the European competition’s qualifiers.
Ending the season with silverware
Arsenal were the underdogs coming into the game, but were buoyed and inspired by their victories over Premier League champions Liverpool, and knocking Manchester City out of the cup in the Semi Finals.
Goal machine
Aubameyang becomes the first player in Premier League history to score 2 goals in the Semi Finals as well as in the Final of the oldest national cup competion in the world.
“Sign da ting”
Arsenal fans have been praying for Aubameyang to “sign da ting“, an urban English slang which means “to sign a new contract”, with the talismanic forward having just one year left on his current contract.
When asked if he has anything to say about his uncertain future at the club, Aubameyang was coy and said: “I’m really not thinking about this,” he said. “I just want to enjoy with the guys and take the trophy now.”
Record breaking manager
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta also becomes the first person ever to win the FA Cup as a player and a manager, with the former Arsenal player also lifting the trophy twice as captain in 2014 and 2015.
It is also worth noting that Mikel Arteta only started his managerial career in December 2019, and the FA Cup win represents the rookie manager’s first piece of silverware.
Dedicated cup win to the fans
Arteta paid tribute to the club as well as the fans, saying: “Everyone’s worked so hard since I joined here to try to bring this club back to winning titles so if we can achieve that, I will be delighted.”
He added: “But not for myself; for the players and the club that has been through some very difficult moments in the last few seasons. And as well for our fans because they really deserve for us to give them some joy and nice moments.”
Congratulations to Arsenal for their record breaking cup win!