FA Cup Final: Five reasons why Hull will shock Arsenal

Michael Lintorn
14 May 2014

Arsene Wenger's side have lost three finals since their last trophy

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Michael Lintorn puts on the Contrarian hat to list five reasons to fancy Hull to upset Arsenal at Wembley...

"Arsenal have been to the modern Wembley three times before without achieving a 90-minute triumph."
Back Hull to win the FA Cup @ 4.67/2

Arsenal are 1.261/4 favourites to equal Man United's record of 11 FA Cup triumphs against Hull, but there are at least five reasons to believe that Humberside's finest are the savvier selection at 4.67/2...

The weight of the nine-year "drought"
Arsenal haven't been short of opportunities to lift silverware since parading their last trophy in 2005. They have reached the final four of seven cup competitions prior to this venture, falling in the semi-finals four times and losing three finals. On some of those occasions, they came up against superior teams - Barcelona, Chelsea and Man United - but they have also been denied by Wigan (League Cup 2005/06), Tottenham (League Cup 2007/08) and Birmingham (League Cup 2010/11), hinting at a psychological hurdle that they are struggling to clear.

The bursting of the double bubble
Arsenal got the better of the Tigers in each of their Premier League encounters, winning 2-0 at the Emirates in December and 3-0 at the KC Stadium last month. An encouraging omen, you'd assume, yet the last two FA Cup Finals were won by sides that lost home and away to their opponents in the regular season. Wigan were turned over 0-2 and 0-1 by Man City in 2012/13, and Chelsea were beaten 1-2 and 1-4 by Liverpool in 2011/12.

Hull's stint on easy street
With Premier League survival never truly in doubt, Hull enjoyed the luxury of taking it easy over the five fixtures that followed their FA Cup semi-final victory against Sheffield United, conserving energy for their second day out at Wembley. By contrast, Arsenal have been required to play to their peak, including hurrying players back from injury, to see off Everton for fourth, so the outsiders should arrive fresher.

Arsenal's rocky relationship with Wembley
Arsenal and the national stadium's mutual disaffection started when they tried hosting Champions League home games in the original ground at the turn of the century, a strategy that yielded two wins in six attempts. They have been to the modern arena three times before without achieving a 90-minute triumph, losing to Chelsea in an FA Cup semi-final, Birmingham in a League Cup final and needing a shootout to overcome Wigan in this term's FA Cup semi-finals.

It's Matty Fryatt's destiny
Fryatt absolutely screams FA Cup Final hero. The Hull striker hasn't started a Premier League match all season, but Steve Bruce has been forced to call on him in the FA Cup with Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic ineligible. The soon-to-be-out-of-contract reserve has seized his chance, scoring both goals in the fourth-round success at Southend then notching in both the quarter-finals and semi-finals. He is 6.05/1 to net in the final.

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