Eden Hazard’s first-half penalty was all that was needed to earn Chelsea the eighth FA Cup in their history. West London Sport looks at how a memorable day unfolded at Wembley.
Before the teams got down to business, Wembley was united to remember Ray Wilkins, who died earlier this year. He was a player who graced the field for both teams and his name was loudly sung by supporters.
Much of the build-up to match centred around the uncertain future of Chelsea boss Antonio Conte and his previous spats with counterpart and former Blues manager Jose Mourinho.
It was the Italian who took the early initiative with his tactical decision to play both Cesc Fabregas and Tiemoue Bakayoko in midfield alongside N’Golo Kante, giving greater control in the middle of the park and allowing Hazard to roam free.
Hazard made a bright start, setting the tone for a dominant display playing just behind Olivier Giroud. The Belgian almost scored with a fierce low strike early on, which forced keeper David de Gea into an unconvincing save with his legs.
It was Hazard who put Chelsea ahead from the penalty spot, winning the spot-kick when he was felled by Phil Jones and then coolly sending De Gea the wrong way.
Antonio Rudiger was already standing out for Chelsea at the other end, and the German became increasingly influential and was to be named man of the match.
Chelsea were pushed back after the interval and United’s Marcus Rashford forced Thibaut Courtois to make two fine saves.
Alexis Sanchis had a goal rightly ruled out for offside after Courtois had denied Jones, while Paul Pogba should have made levelled but missed an absolute sitter when he sent a free header wide from a corner.
Chelsea held on for victory to ensure a positive end to a tricky season for Conte.
This post was last modified on 20/05/2018