Although Aston Villa will be underdogs for this Saturday’s FA Cup final clash against current holders Arsenal, here are five tips for Tim Sherwood’s side as they look to spoil the party and take the trophy home themselves…
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Arsenal predicted XI for FA Cup final, with decisions to make in goal & up front vs Aston Villa
1) Don’t score too early
It’s a bit of a cliche perhaps, but Aston Villa might want to avoid the mistake that Hull City made last season and score too early.
Making a bright start is obviously a great lift for the team’s confidence and can put the opposition on the back foot for the rest of the game, meaning they’re exposed to possible counter-attacks.
However, there’s enough evidence in recent years to suggest that this may not always work against a team of Arsenal’s quality.
For example, last year against Hull City, the Gunners completely took over the game after going 2-0 down in under ten minutes, and it didn’t matter how long Steve Bruce’s side had to score a third, they just couldn’t get enough of the ball to do it.
Villa will understandably take a goal whenever it comes, but they might be well advised to keep it tight early, instead of being forced to spend an entire eighty minutes or more defending, which will inevitably get exhausting for their players.
2) Use Benteke’s aerial strength
Arsenal hate playing against strikers like Christian Benteke.
The powerful Belgian international scored three times against the Gunners last season and is one of the closest players we’ve seen-in style and size-to Didier Drogba for a long time in the Premier League.
If he receives effective crosses into the box or indeed any kind of decent service, Benteke’s strength could give him a big advantage over Laurent Koscielny.
Similarly, his pace and skill could also put him in a good position against Per Mertesacker.
Quite simply, he is Villa’s best player and on his day he can win a game like this on his own if he just gets enough opportunities from his team-mates.
3) Use Grealish’s guts and creativity
Another hugely important player for Villa this Saturday could be exciting young midfielder Jack Grealish.
The 19-year-old put in a fantastic display against Liverpool in the semi-finals and seems like the kind of new injection of youth and innovation that this Villa side needed; someone who will relish the big occasion and make the most of being something of an unknown quantity in the game.
With Hector Bellerin a very attack-minded right-back, there could be space for Grealish to exploit on Villa’s left-hand side, and that could prove an essential factor for Sherwood’s side in this big game.
4) Don’t be afraid of defending deep
Villa were destroyed at the Emirates Stadium recently by playing too high a line – you know you’re doing something wrong when even Olivier Giroud is scoring after getting on the shoulder of your last defender!
A repeat of that day could be disastrous for Sherwood at Wembley, and the instruction has to be for players like Ron Vlaar, who are not the quickest, to settle for playing in the penalty area, not allowing space in behind for players like Alexis Sanchez or Theo Walcott.
This will, of course, require a team effort from the midfielders in front of the back four, but Villa are well-equipped to shield their defence with players like Fabian Delph and Ashley Westwood.
5) Get Delph on Cazorla
Speaking of Delph, it is important that Villa’s best defensive midfielder can win the duel against Arsenal’s best playmaker – Santi Cazorla.
Although there is a threat all over the pitch from players like Mesut Ozil, Aaron Ramsey and Sanchez-if he drops deep-it is undoubtedly the Spaniard who has made Arsene Wenger’s side tick this season.
No one else in the Gunners squad has come close to contributing as many assists (11) and he is also their best passer with an 89% accuracy (Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini are slightly higher but have played far fewer games, while Mertesacker is also above Cazorla but inevitably ends up playing safer passes and with more time on the ball).
Unlike Ozil, who can disappear a little and lacks that burst of pace and energy, Cazorla relishes getting on the ball, taking players on and moving it forward, making him the biggest threat to Villa tomorrow.
Needless to say, Villa will need to get a lot of things right to pull this off, but getting close to Cazorla and stopping him from dictating the play is bound to give Arsenal far fewer scoring chances.
(Stats via WhoScored.com)