Arsenal win 5-4 on penalties

The FA Cup Final
Saturday 21 May 2005
£1,000,000 to the winning club



Patrick Vieira paid credit to Manchester United after scoring the winning penalty in the first ever FA Cup Final shoot-out.

The Arsenal skipper showed nerves of steel to convert from the spot to hand his club a 5-4 win after a goalless 120 minutes.

But he admitted United deserved plenty of praise having had the best of the game before the dramatic penalties.

"You have to give credit to Manchester United because they created so many chances," the Frenchman said.

"But we showed fantastic character as a team. Some people will say that we don't deserve to win, but I disagree.

"We knew it would be tough because they are a great team and they showed it.

"We are two of the best teams in the country so when we face each other we know it is going to be difficult. But we worked hard for this win.

"We didn't really have too much power going forward, but we kept going until the end and we stayed really focused in the penalty shoot-out."

Vieira's team-mate, 'keeper Jens Lehmann bounced back from a difficult season to save a vital penalty and help Arsenal triumph over rivals United.

The German goalkeeper kept out Paul Scholes' spot-kick in the shoot-out as the Gunners clinched a 5-4 win after a goalless match.

Lehmann had been dropped earlier in the season, but proved his undoubted ability with a string of great stops before the most important block in the penalty showdown.

"When I came back into the team I wished to win The FA Cup and that is what I have done," he said.

"Sometimes you need a breather during the season, because it is a long season, and that is what I had - but I have come back and now I am very happy.

"Our five penalties were fantastic. We had five and we scored five and that is a very big mental challenge.

"It's always important to win trophies. I came here to win things and we are in a good way."