Chelsea and Arsenal in high octane Premier League action as the build up to the FA Cup Final begins

A week has passed since the semi finals of the FA Cup and I have finally calmed down from all the excitement of attending the Arsenal v Man City match at the magnificent Wembley Stadium. The pairing for the FA Cup final is now established and on Saturday the 27^th May I will be back at Wembley to see Arsenal play Chelsea and conclude my long journey that started in Penrith on Saturday the 6^th August 2016 … seems like a long time ago. During the last week the two finalists have been in action and they both had impressive wins in midweek when Arsenal overcame a dogged opponent and Chelsea were in imperious form when they put 4 goals past Southampton.

The ‘Wenger Out’ campaign at Arsenal seems to have gone quiet and I for one am pleased about this. The Professor followed up overseeing the FA Cup win against the Citizens by masterminding a close win over league champions Leicester City

How long before we see these banners back at The Emirates?

Since the disastrous loss to Crystal Palace about a month ago that sent the sports media into overdrive the Gunners have won every match that they have played. During this period the Professor has proved that he is not finished yet. Although it is still unlikely, Arsenal could yet finish in the top four and secure a Champions League slot. If they combined that achievement with another FA Cup win then even Wenger’s most ardent critics would have to concede that 16-17 has been a very successful season. Although the Gunners dominated the game against Leicester on Tuesday they can count themselves to be slightly fortunate to win as the winning goal was an own goal with only 4 minutes to go.

The previous night the ‘Super Blues’ of Chelsea took a very good Southampton side to Pullars of Perth. Chelsea won 4-2 and a consolation goal by the Saints deep into injury time means that the scoreline flatters Southampton. Chelsea won this game as they pleased with the spectacularly ugly Diego Costa acting as a focus for their deadly forward play. They would have beaten any team in the world on Tuesday evening.

Ugly boy with a talent. Diego da Silva Costa of Chelsea

Diego Costa was named man of the match and put the seal on a virtuoso individual performance by scoring twice. The Brazilian born Spanish international (!) divides opinion among football supporters. Chelsea fans love him and all other football supporters hate him. He combines athleticism, skill and an unerring ability to score goals from all angles with all parts of his body with playacting, gamesmanship and a lack of respect for referees and fellow professionals. It is going to be interesting to follow the progress of both ‘Good Diego’ and ‘Bad Diego’ over the next month as the build up to the FA Cup final gathers pace.

Later today both Arsenal and Chelsea are in league action again and both games are being shown on Sky TV. I could have ‘couch sores’ by 6.30 pm this evening. At 2.05 Chelsea will be kicking off away at Everton and at 4.30 Arsenal will be at White Hart Lane to take on their arch rivals Spurs. Both matches will have a big impact on how the Premier League might finish and it is going to be a fascinating watch.

On other matters connected with ‘The Road to Wembley from Scotland’ I will be investigating Chelsea’s Scots heritage soon and I will also be stepping up my efforts to secure a ticket for the FA Cup final. Also watch out for a series of ‘where are they now’ posts as I re-acquaint myself with some of the characters who made an impact in the early stages of this journey. Watch this space for these tales … and keep reading!