The 2001 FA Cup final was one of the main reasons Michael Owen won the Ballon d’Or, but one Arsenal player was so good in that game he left Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard stunned.
Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-1 in 2001 FA Cup final
Liverpool won an iconic treble in the 2000-01 season, as they were crowned League Cup champions, won the UEFA Cup (renamed UEFA Europa League) and overcame Arsenal in the FA Cup at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
The victory over the Gunners is mainly remembered for the performance of Owen, who was crowned the best player in the world later that year at the Ballon d’Or ceremony.
|
Michael Owen’s Ballon d’Or winning season |
Liverpool and England |
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
55 |
|
Goals |
31 |
|
Assists |
8 |
|
Trophies |
FA Cup, UEFA Cup, League Cup |
The Gunners largely dominated the match however, mainly thanks to their midfield of Robert Pires, Patrick Vieira, Gilles Grimandi and Freddie Ljungberg. Ljungberg eventually broke the deadlock about 20 minutes from full time, and the legendary Thierry Henry even missed a chance to make it 2-0 shortly after, which he would soon come to regret.
With less than ten minutes to go, Owen pounced on a poor clearance to equalise. Five minutes later the comeback was complete, as the striker raced past Tony Adams and Lee Dixon before firing a brilliant finish beyond David Seaman.
Owen was unsurprisingly named Man of the Match, but Jamie Carragher has since revealed that such was Arsenal’s dominance, the performance of Vieira left a young Gerrard shocked, so much so he still talked about it for years afterwards.
Vieira was “as good as anything we have seen”
Speaking in 2014, Carragher namede Vieira in his XI of best foreign players in Premier League history, and revealed the Liverpool squad were stunned by how good he was at the Millennium Stadium.
“A monster, his partnership with Emmanuel Petit was as good as anything we have seen. His performance against Liverpool in the 2001 FA Cup final stands out.
“He was magnificent and didn’t deserve to be on the losing side. In the dressing room afterwards, everyone kept saying: ‘how good was Vieira?’ Steven Gerrard still talks about that game as Vieira made him realise he had to climb a few more levels to reach the top.
“It says everything that clubs, when they sign young midfielders, hope they turn into ‘the next Vieira’.”
Vieira made 405 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 32 goals and winning seven major trophies, including three Premier League titles.
Gerrard later confirmed his admiration for Gunners legend, saying ahead of their meeting as the managers of Aston Villa and Crystal Palace respectively: “He’s a man I have a lot of admiration and respect for, first and foremost as a player.
Patrick Vieira in pictures
“I had many battles against Patrick, some highs, some lows. He was certainly a player you could really go and compete against. You could kick him, fight him, compete against him and he’d shake your hand after the game.
“He was a top, top footballer and one of the toughest battles I ever faced in terms of being a player, and I expect the same to be the case from the side. I know he’s a winner.”
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And the Liverpool star obviously learned a thing or two from their encounter in the final, as he actually boasts a positive head to head record in matches against Vieira, winning seven, drawing three and losing five.
There is no doubt that the pair were the heartbeat of their clubs and two of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history.
