There was
something wonderfully nostalgic about sitting in the steepling stadium
as it filled up and watching some of the great goals that have graced
this occasion in the past playing on the big screens.
There
was something uplifting about hearing The Band of the Brigade of
Gurkhas playing I Vow to Thee My Country as Villa and Arsenal, two of
the grand old teams of English football, arrived at the stadium.
There
was something reassuring about the communal singing of Abide With Me,
about seeing thousands of rival supporters spilling off the Tube at
Wembley Park and mingling as they streamed down Wembley Way in the late
May sunshine.
And
something timeless about seeing a young lad in his Villa colours catch
sight of the Wembley pitch for the first time and gaze up at the stands
in wonder. It is one of the rites of generations of English football
fans.
Arsenal supporters raise their yellow scarves to create a colourful atmosphere at Wembley
The Band of Brigade Gurkhas ramp up the proceedings by playing I Vow to Thee My Country
Young Villa fans pose with a cut-out trophy outside the stadium ahead of the game
One
of the great occasions of world football felt more important than ever.
It felt like it was helping to sluice away some of the filth that
coated the sport last week.
It was a relief to turn away from politics and corruption and the moral bankruptcy of FIFA and turn back to football.
In
the first half, Villa did little more than attempt containment of this
mercurial Arsenal team that is capable of such breathtaking individual
and collective skill.
Villa
snapped at the holders’ heels and tried to harry them out of their
stride and their assuredness but Arsenal were simply too good. As usual,
Mesut Ozil was bewitching in midfield, using his magical left foot like
a wand, nutmegging defenders, prompting and probing.
And
somehow, at the end of a week when we were forced to concentrate on so
much that was wrong with football, it seemed right that we should be
allowed to focus on a team and a style of play that has brought so much
pleasure to so many over the years of Arsene Wenger’s reign at Arsenal.
His
side were way too good for Villa. They refused to let their talent to
be contained. And in the beauty of their football, we found a fleeting
antidote to the ugliness of FIFA.
Mesut Ozil, who was mesmerising on the day, poses with Mathieu Flamini after the game
Theo Walcott justified his starting spot by opening the scoring with a well struck volley
Alexis Sanchez's long-range strike will be remembered as one of the greatest ever FA Cup Final goals
They took the lead five minutes before half time with a thumping finish from Theo Walcott and then they put on an exhibition.
Five
minutes after half time, Alexis Sanchez, who has been such a fine
addition to English football this season, scored a goal to grace any cup
final. Villa gave him way too much time to turn and cut inside but then
he unleashed a spectacularly vicious, dipping shot from 35 yards out
that wrong-footed Shay Given and kissed the underside of the crossbar on
its way in.
When
Per Mertesacker scored a third with almost half an hour still to go,
the game was over. It was much too one-sided to get close to being a
classic but Arsenal’s display, capped by an added- time finish from
Olivier Giroud that left the result at 4-0, made up for that. It allowed
us to revel in the beautiful game again.
Okay,
so it wasn’t ideal that the FA should choose to announce that from next
season, the addition of a new sponsor meant teams would be playing for
The Emirates FA Cup. But there were consolations to the abandonment of
tradition: the estimated £30 million from the three-year deal will be
channelled into the building of all-weather pitches.
German defender Per Mertesacker (2nd left) rises to head in Arsenal's third goal in a one-sided affair
Substitute Olivier Giroud completed the rout with a close-range finish in injury time
And
after the news that David Gill had stuck to his word and resigned his
position on FIFA's executive committee, it was also heartening to hear
FA chairman Greg Dyke stepping up his attack on discredited Fifa
president, Sepp Blatter.
‘I
think it is gloves off against Blatter,’ he said. ‘The really
interesting thing about being at the FA is that he can do nothing to us.
We don’t need his money. We don’t get much of it anyway. Nor should we.
What can he do to us?
‘We
can say what we like. More will start doing that. The Dutch have been
doing it and even the Germans have started saying it, which is unusual. I
understand Blatter is now saying “I forgive but I don’t forget” about
us. Well, let me tell him back, we neither forgive nor forget either.’
Sepp Blatter was re-elected FIFA president despite criticism over allegation's of corruption in the organisation
FA chief Greg Dyke (above) stepped up his attack on Blatter, while David Gill resigned from FIFA's comittee
Dyke suggested that there was still time for the decision to award the 2022 World Cup to Qatar to be revoked.
‘If
the Swiss authorities come out with evidence that Qatar 2022 was
awarded after bribery then I think a lot of us will be asking for it to
be reopened,’ he said.
Amid
the mix of sycophancy, resignation and defeatism that has met Blatter’s
victory in Friday’s FIFA's election, it was heartening to hear Dyke’s
defiance. Yes, there are many problems for us to grasp in English
football. That is obvious. But Saturday was a day to celebrate our
footballing heritage, to admire a fine Arsenal side, to praise one of
the great managers of our game and glory in the fact there are some
things Fifa cannot besmirch.
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