Arsenal manager in positive mood for FA Cup final against Chelsea as he recalls fightback against Hull six years ago
The way Mikel Arteta remembers it, Arsenal had wanted it too much. Before the 2014 FA Cup final against Hull, when he was the captain, everybody connected to the club could feel the weight of a nine-year trophy drought. But, perhaps more than that, they could feel the future of Arsène Wenger, the architect of the modern Arsenal, was on the line. Lose and the manager would not get a new contract. That was the sentiment of the time.
Arsenal were 2-0 down after eight minutes and it would have been three had Kieran Gibbs not cleared off the line from Alex Bruce. The atmosphere at Wembley was frenzied and Arsenal’s players, temples pounding, looked punch drunk.
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