Arsenal vs Chelsea FA Cup final: Both teams tied 1-1 at half time

Chelsea's Christian Pulisic scored the first goal of the game; Arsenal's captain Aubameyang scored the equalising goal from a penalty

Chelsea started its search for FA Cup glory strongly after taking the lead in the final within five minutes of the game. Arsenal allowed Chelsea to build its game which lead to Chelsea’s attack. Former Arsenal player Olivier Giroud passed the ball to Christian Pulisic who scored from close range. After the first goal, Chelsea took control of the game with more possession.

However, after the early goal, both the team failed to create worthy chances in the game. Arsenal looked to threaten Chelsea through the left flank. Ainsley Maitland-Niles tried to make some chances through his runs down the flank but failed to create any concrete chances for Arsenal.

Midway into the first half, with Arsenal’s continued exploitation of Chelsea’s weak defence on the left flank, the gunners were awarded a penalty after the gunner’s captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was fouled in Chelsea’s penalty area by César Azpilicueta. Aubameyang, who has scored 27 goals this season for his team, coolly finished the penalty, equalising the match.

Arsenal’s equalising goal put life back in the team with both teams creating a decent number of chances. As the game reached half-time, Arsenal looked more and more threatening, creating some dangerous chances with its forward line of Nicolas Pépé, Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette combining well.

While Chelsea started well with an early goal, Mikel Arteta would have been a happy man after the end of the first half as his team finished as the better team. Frank Lampard would have been left frustrated.

Arsenal will look to continue its momentum in the second half and end the season with silverware and a Europa League qualification. While Chelsea has already qualified for the Champions League, they will look to end their season with a trophy.