Antonio Conte's first season at Stamford Bridge has been a tremendous one. Chelsea won the Premier League title by a comfortable seven points, and it's got a chance to wrap up a double with the FA Cup title if it can take care of business against Arsenal on what amounts to be the final day of the English soccer season.
At 12:30 p.m. ET, tune into FOX for live television coverage of this FA Cup match on Saturday, May 27, 2017, at Wembley Stadium.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Arsenal +240
Chelsea -109
Draw +250
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
Conte has said repeatedly that he thinks Arsenal should be considered the favorite to win the FA Cup, but who is he kidding? Chelsea has easily been the best team in England all season long, and this shouldn't be an exception.
The Blues are essentially 50/50 choices to win this match in normal time or to not do so and either lose or be forced into extra time. The Gunners are +180 underdogs to hoist the Cup, while Chelsea enters this final match of the season at -250.
The total of 2.5 with -125 vig on the over is a bit high by the standards of a Cup final, but Chelsea was rarely blanked this year and is expected to put at least one or two past former keeper, Petr Cech.
How They Got Here
Part of the reason why Chelsea won the Premier League is because of a defense that, for the most part, was stellar all season long. The Blues have conceded just three goals along the way in the FA Cup, and two of those came against Tottenham in a tremendous semifinal. The 4-2 win though, was the culmination of a great run to get to this point. Chelsea took care of Peterborough United, Brentford, Wolverhampton, Manchester United and Tottenham, and only one of the five matches was decided by a single goal.
Arsenal has had a tricky 2017 to date, and it all started with a near miss against Preston North End. The Gunners did finish the job against the Championship side, winning 2-1, and it's a good thing they did. They crushed Southampton 5-0 and then picked up an incredibly favorable draw in the fifth round and the quarterfinals against Sutton United and Lincoln City. In the semifinals, Arsenal was a decided underdog against Manchester City, and it looked dead in the water after Sergio Garcia scored in the 62nd minute. But Nacho Monreal leveled, and Alexis Sanchez finished the job in extra time for the biggest win of the team's season.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
Arsenal has had a frustrating season for sure, finishing fifth best in England and being relegated to the Europa League. It won't all be made better of the team wins the FA Cup, but there will surely be less pressure on Arsene Wenger to step aside and end his reign as the longest tenured manager in the Premier League.
But Sanchez, Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil aren't going to go down quietly, and if Chelsea isn't careful, it could be in for a war.
If we're being honest though, the Blues shouldn't be relenting here. They never took their foot off the gas pedal, even after winning the Premier League title, and even for as well as Tottenham played down the stretch, there was never a serious doubt Chelsea was going to relent. We can't imagine that it's going to do so in the final match of the season. This should turn out to be a tremendous coronation party for the champs to help them claim their second piece of silverware of the season.
FA Cup Odds: Chelsea 3, Arsenal 1
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