Young England striker Michael Owen was the hero for Liverpool in Cardiff this afternoon when his late double strike earned the Merseysiders a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup final. It proved a bitter blow for the Gunners who were on top for most of this match and when they took the lead in the 72nd minute through Freddie Ljungberg it seemed the Cup was heading back to London.
However, Arsenal failed to finish off the game, despite creating numerous chances before and after they scored, and they were left to rue their missed opportunities when Owen, who was anonymous for most of the afternoon, displayed two moments of sheer brilliance to secure Liverpool their second Cup final victory this season.
Although the game started brightly, the first FA Cup final to be held outside of England failed to live up to the pre-match expecatations by half-time. Liverpool looked lively in the opening quarter-hour but it was Arsenal who enjoyed the best of the first half action. They should have been awarded a spot-kick in the 17th minute when Thierry Henry pounced on Freddie Ljungberg's excellent pass and his goalward shot was handled by Stephane Henchoz at the near-post and went wide. Henry appealed for a penalty but the incident was missed by the referee and linesman and not even a corner was awarded to the Gunners.
Immediately after that escape, Owen had a snap-shot on goal but it was blocked by Martin Keown who breathed a sigh of relief when Steven Gerrard pulled the rebound high and over the bar. Despite the fact that Arsenal dominated proceedings, they had nothing to show for it by the interval.
After the break, Arsenal continued to control the match and a fine effort from Sylvain Wiltord was blocked by Markus Babbel. Liverpool were forced into another goal-line clearance in the 56th minute. A loose ball in the penalty area fell to young defender Ashley Cole and with an open goal at his mercy, his strike was cleared by Sami Hyypia.
Liverpool brought on Gary McAllister but his introduction didn't change matters and Arsenal continued to dominate until they finally broke the deadlock in the 72nd minute. A poor clearance by goalkeeper Sander Westerveld reached Gilles Grimandi who passed to Pires. Although Gerrard put in a challenge, Pires managed to find Ljungberg who made a brilliant run into the box and the Swede cooly slotted home.
After that, Arsenal had several opportunities to wrap up a deserved victory but thanks to Westerveld, Liverpool remained in contention as the final whistle drew ever-closer. Houllier made his final gamble, sending on Patrik Berger and Robbie Fowler and it proved to be an inspired substitution.
The equaliser arrived in the 83rd minute when a free kick by Gary McAllister found Markus Babbel in the crowded penalty area and his header down set up Owen to fire the ball home from close range. This goal was exactly what Liverpool needed and suddenly they were awake and taking the game to Arsenal after sitting back for so long. With extra time looming, Owen broke Arsenal's hearts when he struck again in the 88th minute. The England international went on a blistering solo run and outwitted Arsenal stalwarts Tony Adams and Lee Dixon to pounce on substitute Berger's long-ball to shoot across goal past the outstretched David Seaman into the back corner of the net.
With the two domestic Cup finals wrapped up, Liverpool are now on course for a historic treble as they head to Dortmund next Wednesday for the UEFA Cup final against Spanish side Alaves. There is likely to be little speculation about who will start up front for the Merseysiders in that game, after Owen's man-of-the-match display in Cardiff this afternoon.
Liverpool: Westerveld, Babbel, Henchoz, Hyypia, Carragher, Murphy, Hamann, Gerrard, Smicer, Heskey, Owen. Subs: Fowler, Berger, Arphexad, McAllister, Vignal.
Arsenal: Seaman, Dixon, Cole, Adams, Keown, Ljungberg, Vieira, Grimandi, Pires, Wiltord, Henry. Subs: Bergkamp, Lauren, Manninger, Parlour, Kanu.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
