FA Cup love affair leaves Wenger on the brink of history

The Frenchman can win the trophy for the sixth time on Saturday, with Aston Villa the only obstacle standing in his way, and few would argue against him emerging victorious.Every great visionary has a firm grasp of history and Arsene Wenger is no different. The supposed specialist in failure stands on the brink of becoming an FA Cup record-breaker with only Aston Villa standing between him and glory.Jose Mourinho may have used Chelsea's glitzy end-of-season awards gala to belittle his favourite foe earlier this week but the FA Cup, as it so often has during his illustrious career, will afford Wenger the opportunity to enjoy something of a last laugh should Arsenal emerge victorious at Wembley on Saturday.
His focus, however, remains simply on winning. When asked about the potential record sixth cup win on Wednesday, Wenger replied with typical diplomacy: It's not easy. I would love to do it. I'm not focused on that. I'm more focused on the fact we have fought so hard to get there. We went to Manchester United to get there, we had to win big games, now we want to win it.Wenger's love affair with the competition stretches as far back as 1998, when goals from Marc Overmars and Nicolas Anelka earned the Frenchman his first taste of FA Cup glory. That year, Arsenal had to overcome Port Vale and West Ham, after a replay at Upton Park, on penalties. They missed their No.1 goalkeeper, David Seaman, and most recognisable goalscorer, Ian Wright, for much of the season and narrowly overcame second-tier opposition in a tense semi-final. The similarities and parallels are inescapable.