ARSENAL AIM FOR A FIRST TROPHY IN NINE YEARS WHEN THEY PLAY AGAINST HULL CITY IN FA CUP FINAL AS DORTMUND CLUSH WITH BAYERN IN GERMANY SEASON FINALE Arsenal are hoping to end a nine-year run without a trophy, their last piece of silverware coming when they beat Manchester United on penalties to lift the 2005 FA Cup. Wenger also guided the club to FA Cup success in 1998, 2002, and 2003, while they were beaten finalists in 2001. But since 2005 the clubs fans have endured disappointments in cup competitions, with defeats in the final of the 2006 Champions League and League Cup finals of 2007 and 2011. Nine years without a trophy: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger Arsene Wenger has won seven major trophies during his 18 years in charge of the Gunners - three Premier League titles and four FA Cups, including the 2005 final, his last success. Wenger said: The drought may make it a little more difficult but once you walk over the line you just focus on your football. You dont play with the history, you play with your quality and your desire to play well. We need to just turn up and play well. Hull manager Steve Bruce, whose side finished 16th in the Premier League and have qualified for the Europa League regardless of the result against Arsenal, said: Were rank outsiders. Arsenal are clear favourites but for a club like ours to take on the mighty Arsenal has a ring to it which is what the FA Cup is all about. Elsewhere, Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich are aiming for a domestic double when they meet arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund in the German Cup final on Saturday. Bayern boss Pep Guardiola has dropped striker Mario Mandzukic and is without midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger. Head-to-head record in 2013-14 Borussia Dortmund v Bayern Munich 27 July Dortmund 4-2 Munich (German Super Cup) 28 August: Dortmund 0-3 Munich (Bundesliga) 12 April: Munich 0-3 Dortmund (Bundesliga) Basti is injured, a problem with his knee. Mandzukic is my decision, said the ex-Barcelona coach. Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski, who joins Bayern next month, is set to play after shaking off a calf problem. Jurgen Klopps side finished 19 points adrift of Bayern in the league, but can end their season on a positive note by beating Guardiolas team in Berlins Olympic Stadium. However, 16-time winners Bayern are the clear favourites to retain the trophy which they won against Stuttgart last year. Germany international Schweinsteiger is missing after straining a tendon in his left knee during last Saturdays 1-0 Bundesliga win over Stuttgart. Guardiola said he hoped the 29-year-old would recover in time for this summers World Cup finals, but added: Im not a doctor. Top scorer Mandzukic, who has netted 21 goals this season, did not travel to Berlin despite being fit to play, increasing speculation that the Croatia international will leave the Allianz Arena this summer. This was my decision. He was fit, he could play but we have 18 players and I will play with them, said Guardiola. It is my decision. Mandzukics position is under threat from the impending arrival of Poland international Lewandowski, who missed part of Dortmunds training session on Thursday as a precaution. Top two collide Saturdays match will be just the third time the reigning Bundesliga champions and runners-up have met in the DFB Cup final. In 2005 it was Bayern against Schalke, and Bayern against Dortmund in 2012. But the 25-year-old is expected to be fit enough to play against his future employers. We were very careful with him, said Klopp, who was speaking in a joint news conference alongside Bayern counterpart Guardiola. Klopp watched his team lose in last seasons Champions League final against Bayern, but they have held the upper hand in the meetings between the two sides since. Dortmund won the German Super Cup in August before the pair traded 3-0 away wins in the Bundesliga. This to me is the biggest final you can play, added Klopp. You have to beat Bayern either en route or in the final. It is unlikely that someone else will beat them for you.
Posted on: Sat, 17 May 2014 07:56:30 +0000
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