CHELSEA and Liverpool players will be hoping to shining on the pitch for this season’s FA cup final.
It is hard to believe but Chelsea and Liverpool Football Club’s have not met each other in the final of this major cup before.
Although, the teams have been in 43 semi-finals clashes against various opponents.
The game will be the first FA Cup final under floodlights at Wembley in almost 20 years, kicking-off at 5.15pm on Saturday, May 5. It is being shown live on ITV and ESPN.
This season Liverpool have already brought home the League Cup from the capital’s famous stadium, beating Cardiff on penalties.
The reds have seven FA Cup triumphs to their name, the first under Bill Shankly in 1965. Rafa Benitez was the last Liverpool manager to bring the trophy back to Merseyside, beating West Ham United on penalties at the Millennium Stadium six years ago.
The semi-final of this year’s competition saw Liverpool come up against the blue side of the city, Everton, with a 2-1 victory.
It is Kenny Dalglish’s fourth FA Cup final as Liverpool manager with two wins and a defeat on his record.
In the eighties, King Kenny’s team triumphed over ‘The Toffees’ twice in the final, once in 1986 and four years later in 1989. The year before, 1988, they lost in the final against Wimbledon 1-0.
Liverpool’s captain Steven Gerrard has scored in numerous cup finals including the 2006 FA Cup final. His numerous honours include two FA Cup wins.
Chelsea played Manchester United in 2007, becoming the first team to win the FA Cup at Wembley, following its newly completed build. Didier Drogba, who planted the extra-time goal in the back of the net, will be hoping to do the same on Saturday.
To get to the final this year, Chelsea won against their neighbours Tottenham Hotspurs in a romping 5-1 victory.
The blue’s leader – John Terry – has seen triple success in FA Cup finals during his time wearing the armband, which went some way to help him become the club’s most honoured captain.
Neither Chelsea or Liverpool are title contenders for this year’s premier league but later this month, Chelsea will also be facing Bayern Munich on May 19 in the Champions League.
With so much to play for, the 131st final of the competition should prove to be a great cup clash with Betfair placing Chelsea as narrow favourites just over Liverpool.
