Arsenal fans will be hoping that is third time lucky for the Gunners against Hull City in the FA cup, after we met the tigers in the final two seasons ago and then again last year on the way to back to back trophy successes. Well some of us will anyway, but some Arsenal fans have been accused by former Gunners strike star Ian Wright of disrespecting the oldest cup competition in football.
Writing in The Sun he slammed the Arsenal fans who have been complaining and saying that the FA cup wins in no way make up for Arsene Wenger’s failure to lead the club to the summit of English football since the invincibles season of 2004. While Wrighty understands and shares the frustration of fans about yet another faltering Premier League title challenge, he reckons we should have much more respect for the famous old piece of silverware.
He wrote, “Two years ago Arsenal lifted the FA Cup and it was seen as the saving grace for Arsene Wenger.
“Now it’s being used as a stick to beat him with — almost viewed as an “also-ran” competition not worthy of even winning.
“That, in my book, is the most ridiculous insult for a competition which still deserves its place as the best in football.
“If the Gunners win tonight’s fifth-round replay at Hull, they will be just three wins away from lifting a third successive FA Cup.
“That would be a fantastic achievement — something that’s not been done since Blackburn Rovers did the ‘treble’ 130 years ago!
“So don’t start using the competition as some sort of insult just because Arsenal are messing up in the league.
“Look, I totally understand where fans are coming from with their frustration at constantly tripping over in the title race.
“So yes, Gunners fans have got good grounds to be raging. But don’t take that out on the FA Cup.
“I won it twice at Arsenal, the last of which gave us the double in 1998 — and none of us saw it as a poor relation.
“The Gunners may have been second rate too often when it comes to the title race, but don’t put winning the FA Cup in the same bracket.”
I reckon he has a point you know. In it’s long history the cup has only been won by a team outside the top flight eight times, the last being West Ham in 1980 so it is clear that quality counts and it is far from easy to win. Man United have not lifted it in over a decade and it has been 25 years since the puds got their hands on it.
Of course we all want the EPL title but can we not appreciate the FA cup and want Wenger and the players to do all they can to equal that 130 year old record of three in a row?