2001 FA Cup final

Arsenal entered the competition in the third round and their cup run started with an away tie against Carlisle United. Although the home side created numerous chances in the opening minutes and looked likeliest to score, Arsenal took the lead in the 22nd minute through Sylvain Wiltord. Poor finishing from both teams thereafter meant Arsenal progressed by a slender scoreline.[4] In the fourth round, Arsenal faced Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road. The visitors' first goal came around the half-hour mark; defender Ashley Cole cleared Peter Crouch's goal-bound header and from that Arsenal launched a counterattack. Lee Dixon's cross inadvertently met Chris Plummer who scored an own goal. Wiltord extended Arsenal's lead a minute later, and QPR conceded another own goal early in the second half which sealed the tie in the visitors' favour. Arsenal finished as comfortable 6–0 winners, representing the club's best away win in the FA Cup for 64 years.[5]

In the fifth round, Arsenal played the cup holders Chelsea at home. Throughout the tie, Arsenal's centre-back partnership of Oleh Luzhnyi and Igors Stepanovs struggled against the pace of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who equalised for Chelsea after Thierry Henry gave the home side the lead. Wiltord replaced Robert Pires in the second half and scored twice to settle the match.[6] In the sixth round, Arsenal enjoyed a comfortable win against Blackburn Rovers of the First Division, where Wiltord continued his run scoring in each round of the competition.[7]

Arsenal faced Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final and it was their local rivals who had taken the lead in the 14th minute.[8] Patrick Vieira equalised just after Tottenham captain Sol Campbell was taken off the pitch to receive treatment.[8] Tottenham managed to withstand pressure from Arsenal for most of the second half, but came unstuck in the 73rd minute when Pires scored the decisive goal.[8]

Liverpool entered the competition in the third round, where they were drawn against Second Division side Rotherham United at home. Igor Bišćan was sent off in the tie for a second bookable offence, moments after Emile Heskey had scored. Dietmar Hamann extended Liverpool's lead in the 73rd minute and a further goal by Heskey ensured their progress in the competition.[9]

Liverpool's opponent in the fourth round was Leeds United.[10] The match was played at Elland Road on 27 January 2001 in front of a near-capacity crowd of 37,108. The home team enjoyed much of the possession, but struggled to find a breakthrough as Liverpool's defence stood firm. Two minutes before full-time, Barmby, on as a substitute, scored the winning goal, rebounding a shot that came off the post. Barmby then turned provider for Liverpool's second, setting-up Heskey to score.[11]

Anfield hosted Manchester City in the fifth round. It was the start of a decisive week for Liverpool, as they faced Roma midweek in the UEFA Cup, then Birmingham City in the 2001 Football League Cup Final.[12] Liverpool were awarded a penalty after five minutes, as goalkeeper Nicky Weaver fouled Vladimír Šmicer inside the 18-yard box. Jari Litmanen converted the spot kick to give Liverpool the lead, which quickly became 2–0 when Heskey's shot found its way past Weaver. Andrei Kanchelskis' goal in the 28th minute halved the scoreline, but Šmicer and Markus Babbel each scored in the second half to put Liverpool in a commanding lead. City persisted and in stoppage time scored their second goal of the match; Shaun Goater's deflected shot did enough to beat goalkeeper Sander Westerveld.[12]

Liverpool travelled to Prenton Park to play Tranmere Rovers in the sixth round. Danny Murphy and Michael Owen each scored in a first half in which the visitors dominated play.[13] Steve Yates pulled a goal back for Tranmere after half-time, but in the 52nd minute Steven Gerrard headed-in a cross to restore Liverpool's two-goal advantage. A mistake by Robbie Fowler gifted substitute Wayne Allison the chance to score, but the striker made amends as he converted a penalty kick in the 81st minute.[13] In the semi-final, Liverpool faced Wycombe Wanderers at Villa Park. Goals from Heskey and Fowler and a consolation scored by Wycombe's captain Keith Ryan ensured Liverpool won 2–1 and earnt a place in the final.[14]

In addition to hosting the FA Cup Final, the Millennium Stadium acted as the venue for the Charity Shield, and all major Football League trophy and play-off finals.[15]

In October 2000, Wembley Stadium, the final's traditional venue, was closed in anticipation of major redevelopment.[16] Having considered alternative venues such as Twickenham, Murrayfield and Villa Park, the FA announced in January 2001 that the next three Cup finals would be staged at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.[17] This therefore marked the first time the showpiece event was held outside England.[17] In the lead-up to the final, FA chief executive Adam Crozier acknowledged concerns over transport and the quality of the pitch, saying, "We've done a lot of work with Cardiff and hopefully it will be a great occasion, but we'll take a view about how it's worked after the final and decide whether to still hold the match there."[18] A new pitch was re-laid in May, and the police made attempts to ease traffic on the M4 by opening three more turn-offs than they did for the League Cup final.[19]

The finalists received a total allocation of approximately 52,000 tickets, which was an estimated increase of 10% on previous Wembley finals.[20] Seat prices for the final exceeded £70,[20] though some ticket touts charged as much as £1,000.[21] The cheapest tickets cost £20; the rest were priced at £40 and £55.[20]

Arsenal were appearing in the final of the FA Cup for the 14th time, their first in over three years. They had won the cup seven times previously (in 1930, 1936, 1950, 1971, 1979, 1993 and 1998) and were beaten in the final six times.[22] By comparison, Liverpool were making their 12th appearance in a FA Cup final. The club won the cup five times (in 1965, 1974, 1986, 1989, 1992) and lost six finals, most recent of which against Manchester United in 1996.[23] Arsenal and Liverpool had previously met thirteen times in the FA Cup, including four replays.[24] Arsenal had a slender advantage in those meetings, winning five times to Liverpool's four.[24] Both clubs were involved in the longest ever semi-final in FA Cup history in 1980, which required three replays after the original tie ended goalless.[25] Brian Talbot's goal at Highfield Road earnt Arsenal a 1–0 victory.[25]

Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier was on course to win multiple trophies in the 2000–01 season.

The last meeting between the two teams had been in the Premier League on 23 December 2000. Liverpool recorded a 4–0 win at Anfield, their third-straight victory in all competitions.[26] Gérard Houllier, the manager of Liverpool, enjoyed success in the cup competitions during the 2000–01 season; under his management, the club ended their six-year spell without silverware by winning the League Cup,[27] and in the calendar year defeated Roma, Porto and Barcelona to reach the 2001 UEFA Cup Final.[28] Houllier was indifferent that his side were considered the underdogs in the FA Cup final, and told reporters, "We have great work ethic and team ethic. There is a great desire to achieve something as a club."[29] He confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Heskey would start the final, though had yet to make a final decision over who would partner the England forward.[29]

Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger admitted his team had underachieved during the season, but took criticism of failing to challenge Manchester United in the league and progressing further in the UEFA Champions League as a "compliment to the club".[30] He spoke in favour of moving FA Cup ties midweek to prevent fixture congestion, because the current system was too demanding for the big clubs: "In England a team that goes for the FA Cup automatically has a problem in the championship, especially if they play in the Champions League. There are then so many games something has to be sacrificed and I have sacrificed points in the championship to the FA Cup."[30] When asked whether reducing the number of teams in the UEFA Champions League would help, Wenger commented it "... would mean less money and no one with the wages we pay can accept a drop in income. As for cutting the Premiership – they have done that in France and now those teams not involved in the cups are complaining."[30]

The match attracted considerable media interest because of the number of foreigners involved.[31] It marked the first time that the two managers of opposing sides were born outside the British Isles, and it was anticipated the final would receive a large overseas audience because of the inclusion of several international players.[31] Broadcast in 70 countries, viewing figures for the match totalled close to 600 million.[32]

Both clubs lined up in a traditional 4–4–2 formation: a four-man defence (comprising two centre-backs and left and right full-backs), four midfielders (two in the centre, and one on each wing) and two centre forwards.[33] Wenger opted to pair Gilles Grimandi with Vieira in midfield and Wiltord up front with Henry, leaving Bergkamp on the substitutes' bench.[34] Ashley Cole played in defence, ahead of Sylvinho, who did not feature in the matchday squad.[35] For Liverpool, Houllier named Owen in the starting line-up, and chose Šmicer and Murphy to play in midfield.[36] Gary McAllister, Patrik Berger and Fowler began the final as substitutes.[36]

Arsenal in their usual home strip of red shirts and white shorts kicked off the match and immediately won a corner, which was dealt with by Westerveld.[35] A run by Heskey six minutes later resulted in the player taking a tumble under Gilles Grimandi's challenge, but his appeals for a penalty were ignored by referee Dunn.[35] Arsenal began to dominate play, with Vieira at the heart of their best moves. The midfielder won a challenge with Heskey in the 17th minute and sent the ball in the direction of Freddie Ljungberg, who in turn passed it to Henry. The Frenchman went around Westerveld and shot the ball goalwards, which was cleared off the line by Stéphane Henchoz.[37] Television replays later showed the ball hitting Henchoz's arm before going wide; although Henry appealed for a penalty, it was turned down as the incident was missed by both the referee and his assistant.[37] Owen came close to scoring in the 20th minute, but for his shot to be blocked by Martin Keown.[37] Arsenal continued to find the best openings, but struggled to split open the Liverpool defence. A long range effort by Grimandi was easily saved by Westerveld as the final approached the half-hour mark, and a duel between Wiltord and Jamie Carragher on the right side resulted in a Liverpool corner.[35] Two minutes before the interval Henry was penalised for drifting into an offside position, having collected a long pass.[38]

Liverpool resumed play and won a free-kick in the 48th minute; Murphy's delivery found Heskey, whose header forced a save from David Seaman. Arsenal enjoyed their best spell of the match soon afterwards, but failed to make use of their set-pieces.[35] A free-kick taken by Pires was easily handled by Westerveld, and nothing came out of the resulting corner.[35] Pires and Henry combined in attack for Arsenal and the latter came close to scoring, had the Liverpool goalkeeper not intervened. The ball rebounded to Cole who shot goalwards, but Sami Hyypiä cleared off the line.[35] Hamann was shown a yellow card for fouling Vieira in the 57th minute, and Houllier responded by replacing him with McAllister four minutes later.[35] The change had the desired effect as it brought composure to Liverpool's play, particularly in midfield. In the 62nd minute Ljungberg received a yellow card for a challenge on Šmicer. Arsenal squandered another chance, this time two minutes before the 70; Henry outpaced Henchoz and his rebounded shot found Ljungberg in the penalty area. The midfielder's effort, a chip over the advancing Westerveld, was cleared off the line by Hyypiä.[39]

With 19 minutes left, Arsenal finally scored. A poor clearance by Westerveld fell to Grimandi, who passed the ball to Pires. Ljungberg received it and rounded the goalkeeper to score, much to Wenger's delight.[38] Henry missed a chance to give Arsenal a two-goal lead in the 74th minute, as his shot was point-blank saved by Westerveld and on the follow-up cleared by Hyypiä.[35] Both managers made changes in the final period of the game; Ray Parlour came on for Wiltord in order to protect Arsenal's lead, whereas Liverpool made an attacking double substitution – Fowler and Berger on for Šmicer and Murphy.[35] Liverpool survived the onslaught and found a foothold in the game when Owen equalised with eight minutes left. Arsenal failed to clear substitute McAllister's free-kick, and Owen pounced with a right-foot finish past Seaman from eight yards.[37] Liverpool's comeback was completed six minutes later in the 88th minute, with extra time looming; Owen was released down the left by a weighted long ball pass from Berger, with the type of vision which had been earlier missing from their play, and he outpaced both Tony Adams and Dixon before shooting low and accurately past Seaman, beating him at the far post.[38] Liverpool held on to their lead for the few minutes remaining to win the final.[38]