Villa can steal win if we stop Cazorla, insists Sherwood
ASK Arsene Wenger where he keeps his extensive medal collection and the manager of Arsenal is not sure where they are these days. He is not the type for a showy trophy room.
‘I don’t know,’ he admitted, as he prepared for this evening’s FA Cup Final against Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium.
‘I am not a collection man. I am always focused on what’s next. I think the guys who come and clean the house come and take them,’ said Wenger.
He was joking, of course, but over the past 19 years as manager of this club he has mopped up three Barclays Premier League titles, five FA Cups and five victories in the Community Shield.
Wenger remains true to English football and its rich heritage, respecting the traditions and the core values of the FA Cup as he closes in on a record-equalling sixth victory as a manager.
He is aware of George Ramsay’s achievements, the man who won the FA Cup with Aston Villa six times between 1887 and 1920.
‘It is not as easy as it looks to win it,’ added Wenger.
Arsenal are overwhelming favourites to lift the trophy again, to utilise the sense of occasion for Santi Cazorla to use his deep-lying midfield position as a springboard for those remorseless attacks.
This week, Aston Villa’s manager Tim Sherwood has been working on an idea to muzzle Cazorla, part of a tactical plan to keep the little creator’s influence on the game down to a bare minimum.
With Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and l ast year’s match- winner Aaron Ramsey waiting to get on the receiving end of those through balls, Sherwood knows that his team could still be swamped.
‘There might be a little tactical adjustment, but my work is done in the week,’ admitted Sherwood.
‘You can make some changes and talk to the players at half-time, but that’s why it’s so frustrating because you can’t do any more.’
Whatever the outcome, Tom Cleverley, Ashley Westwood and Fabian Delph will be getting through some mileage i n the centre of Villa’s midfield.
Sherwood is aware of the scale of the task, to convince a team who conceded eight goals without reply in the Premier League this season that they can beat Arsenal at Wembley.
Those defeats — 3-0 at Villa Park, 5-0 at the Emirates — were on Paul Lambert’s watch. Villa’s players must filter their 6-1 defeat at Southampton and the 1-0 defeat at home to relegated Burnley on the final day of the league season. Arsenal has to be a fresh start.
Sherwood knows that Wenger’s team can freeze, with history pointing to their defeat against Chelsea i n the 2009 FA Cup semi-final at this stadium.
Last season, they were 2-0 down inside the opening eight minutes against Hull City in the Final before coming back to win in extra-time.
Last month, against Championship side Reading, they needed another 30 minutes to win after Garath McCleary had scored a dramatic equaliser for the Royals.
Arsenal occasionally s how vulnerabilities and inevitably there will be a little anxiety about the prospect of winning the FA Cup for a record 12th time.
‘If we go behind, we know the game is not dead,’ added Sherwood. ‘We’ve made chances in every game we’ve played this season. This is a huge club, bigger than I thought and a huge attraction.
‘It’s been in the doldrums for many years and this is a great chance to show everyone what we’re all about.’
They are a huge club, but the memories of their last great team, the side that won the League Cup under Ron Atkinson in 1994 and Brian Little in 1996, are fading.
Wembley has always been a stage f or the big- name players to sparkle, to bring those matchwinning qualities to one of the world’s most i conic f ootball stadiums on the biggest day of the domestic calendar.
In the semi-final, Villa impressed, snatching the ball from Liverpool and relying on the creative talents of young Jack Grealish and the presence of Christian Benteke during their compelling victory.
‘ My l i ttle girl went to the semi-final and said: “I hope you lose because then you can take me swimming the next day”,’ added Sherwood.
‘My missus isn’t a big football fan — she had booked a holiday abroad before the Cup Final.’
They have returned early, with the whole Sherwood clan taking their seats to see if Villa can win their first piece of silverware in this competition since 1957.
Those Villa fans crave success, returning to Wembley for a shot at their first FA Cup since Roberto di Matteo scored Chelsea’s winner at the old stadium in 2000.
Arsenal are formidable opposition, finishing a whopping 37 points ahead of Villa in the table and qualifying automatically for the Champions League. They are a team with pedigree.
Sherwood, an Arsenal fan when he was growing up, is a huge admirer of Wenger, avidly watching his progress since his arrival in English football back in 1996.
‘You have to be careful what you wish for, because for me, he has done a tremendous job,’ Sherwood added.
‘If you line up the chairman and director of every club they would all want a Wenger. Manchester City and Chelsea might be an exception because they have gazzilions to keep throwing at it.
‘ If you want a sustainable business and someone to run it, Arsene Wenger is a great model of that.’
Arsenal’s manager is a serial trophy winner, wi t h his appreciation of this competition growing each time his team makes their way up to the Royal Box. For Sherwood, that winner’s medal would mean more than anything.