FA Cup final: Alan Shearer on Arsenal's win & Chelsea's disappointment

Arsenal's season would have been a disaster if they had lost the FA Cup final to Chelsea but they have ended it on a wonderful note.

It has been a difficult campaign for the Gunners, who missed out on a Champions League place for the first time in 20 years, and they have been under huge pressure - particularly their manager Arsene Wenger.

They also had injury and suspension problems going into the final but they showed great character and put in a brilliant performance to beat the Premier League champions, when not many people gave them a chance.

It was a brilliant final for the neutral, involving some big decisions by the referee and some great goals - and the best team won.

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Wenger gets everything right

The Arsenal players owed their manager a performance, and they certainly gave him one.

Wenger's side thoroughly deserved their victory, and they should have won by an even greater margin - they were a yard sharper and a yard quicker than every Chelsea player throughout the game.

Wenger made a big call with his team selection by picking Per Mertesacker, who has not started a game all season, in defence. I thought he would struggle, but Mertesacker was absolutely magnificent and that was not the only thing Wenger got right.

The speed of Arsenal's start surprised us all - they went at Chelsea from the off and never let up.

They could have been three or four goals ahead at half-time and the only reason they weren't was some poor finishing.

It was the same story after the break. Yes, Chelsea improved but Arsenal had more chances to score, especially at the end when Chelsea were down to 10 men.

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Taylor right to show Moses a red card

There was a clear handball by Alexis Sanchez before he scored Arsenal's first goal - the referee was standing five yards away and he should have given it.

But the other big decision Anthony Taylor had to make he got absolutely correct.

It was a blatant dive by Victor Moses. He tried to con the referee, he tried to cheat - and the referee spotted it. He was absolutely right to show him a second yellow card.

Diving has been a huge subject in the game in the past few months and what Moses did is exactly what will get players a retrospective ban next season if officials miss it at the time.

Taylor did not get to watch a replay, so he had to make that call in a split second and he showed great courage to make it in a game of this size, with millions watching on TV.

It sends out the message that if you go down like that it is wrong and you are going to get punished for it - losing Moses cost Chelsea, and rightly so.

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Champions Chelsea lacking their usual edge

It is two weeks since Chelsea won the Premier League title at the Hawthorns and, by the looks of things, they have done a lot of partying since.

Whatever the reason, Antonio Conte's side did not have their usual edge against Arsenal and their performance at Wembley was totally different to what we have got used to seeing from them this season.

They started slowly and could not pick up their tempo - it took them 29 minutes to have their first shot on target, and right through their team they lacked the intensity that has brought them so much success.

Losing the FA Cup final and missing out on the Double is a disappointing way for them to end the season and they will be hurting for a few days as this defeat sinks in.

They will not forget what happened in the final, but when they reflect on what they have achieved in the past few months and look back on the campaign as a whole, then they will be a lot more positive.

They have decisions of their own to make over Diego Costa's future and whether he stays or goes, but you would still expect them to be the team to beat next year too.

Whether Wenger stays or goes, some things need to change

Wenger has now won a record seven FA Cups since he took charge at Arsenal in 1996, which is a fantastic achievement.

But I don't know whether this latest triumph affects the decision about whether he will leave the club this summer or sign a new contract.

There is probably only one man who does know - Wenger himself - and he will decide, as he appears to decide on everything at the club.

Wenger said after the cup final that there will be be a board meeting about his future this week and an announcement on Wednesday or Thursday.

He also said he has been clear on his future all the time, when he has been anything but. We should find out soon, but it is very strange that the decision has not already been made.

Whether Wenger stays or goes, some things definitely need to change.

He said this week that he feels, with one or two new signings, this Arsenal team is good enough to win the league.

It's not. This Arsenal team is good enough to beat anyone on its day - as we saw at Wembley - but it is not good enough to win the Premier League over a 38-game campaign.

We saw that this season, and they will have to strengthen significantly if they are going to change to become title contenders.

Alan Shearer was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan

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