Arsenal travel to EFL Cup finalists Southampton this evening hoping to ruin a brilliant week for the Saints by putting them out of the more prestigious English competition: the FA Cup.
Claude Puel’s side saw off Liverpool in the semi-final of the EFL Cup on Wednesday night to book their place at Wembley to face Manchester United.
For Arsenal, the FA Cup probably presents their best opportunity of silverware given how tough competition is in the Premier League and Champions League – Chelsea are streaking ahead in the title race and the Gunners have an incredibly tough tie against Bayern Munich in Europe.
The Gunners have found success in the cup in recent years and it’s been a happy hunting ground for silverware at the Emirates Stadium, with two wins in three years.
Wenger excluded a number of his top stars for the trip to Preston North End, opting to rest them against Championship opposition but it’s now time to take the competition seriously. Southampton are no mugs and have already put Wenger’s side out of a cup this season.
Here are FIVE reasons why Arsenal must take the FA Cup seriously this season…
Two competition wins in eleven years
We noted Arsenal’s recent FA Cup success in our intro, but that’s all they’ve had to celebrate over the last decade. A club of the Gunners’ size and stature should be achieving much more in English football and two cup wins is not acceptable for their support.
Adding another one this season would at least give those supporters something to celebrate again, even if their dreams truly are the Premier League title and Champions League.
It’s easy to take cup success for granted but supporters continue to love the competition and, if nothing else, Wenger and Arsenal should take the tournament very seriously for them.
There’s nothing quite like supporting your side to a big win at Wembley in the FA Cup final, a showpiece match in all of English football.
Big players need big moments
While fans obviously crave success, players do too, even through all the money that has swept into the game here.
Wenger’s side badly need to deliver success so that these star players remain happy at the club and give them the quality needed to launch an assault on the Premier League.
If the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil can get paid more elsewhere AND win more trophies, then why would they hang around the Emirates?
There’s the reputation and competition it brings but if the Gunners are always falling short then they have less and less of a reason to stick around and stay loyal to the club.
Pressure on Wenger again
After such a strong start to the season, the way Arsenal wobbled over the festive period and into January was so typical of the last decade.
There seems to be a perpetual feeling of unease in some sections of the support that Wenger remains manager of the club.
A trophy-less season this time around could well be the breaking point in the relationship between the majority of fans and their manager.
There’s no doubt Wenger has been an excellent and revolutionary influence on the club, but if he can’t bring his side to finals either at home or abroad, nor win a league title then perhaps they need to look elsewhere to bring them to the next level.
Can help maintain league form
If Arsenal are truly going to mount a challenge on Chelsea in the second half of the Premier League season then they are going to have to fire on all cylinders in all competitions.
The Gunners need incredible forward momentum with everyone pulling together to sustain the form required to haul in Chelsea’s eight-point lead at the top of the table.
An early cup exit, either today or in the next round, would be a bubble-burster that they may not recover from in the remaining months.
If they can win against Saints, mount a good challenge against Bayern and keep winning in the league then that good feeling can carry the team far. In that sense, Arsenal must treat the FA Cup as seriously as the other competitions.
Become record holders
Arsenal are currently tied with Manchester United as the club who have lifted the FA Cup trophy most. Both have won it twelve times and both have reached the final 19 times.
More FA Cup success then would move them clear of United and be the record holders in their own right. A feather in the cap of any Gunners fans.
To be the team that has won world football’s oldest competition would be quite the achievement and one that Arsenal should strive for.
In the heat of a season it’s unlikely squads and managers think of such records, but it would ensure a good feeling was surrounding the club heading into the summer and next season ahead of another vitally important Premier League campaign.
