Arsenal: 5 Hull City Players to Watch in FA Cup Final

This Saturday, Arsenal have the chance to put all their demons to rest when they make the short trip across the capital to Wembley Stadium to meet Hull City in the FA Cup Final.

Having disposed of three top-six Premier League teams (Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Everton) en route to the final of the most famous cup competition in football history, Arsene Wenger's men are surely considered the favourites against Steve Bruce's Tigers.

Saturday is by no means, however, going to be a stroll in the London sunshine for Wenger's men.  City have threatened the Premier League's top clubs time and again this campaign, and they have the pieces in place to cause an upset this weekend.

Here we are then, in preparation for Saturday's showcase, let's take a look at five of Hull's most important players in the final and how Wenger's men can counter the threat they pose.

All statistics from WhoScored.com unless otherwise stated.

Tom Huddlestone

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

A character Arsenal fans may have been vilifying for years, ex-Spur Tom Huddlestone has been the lynchpin of City's midfield this year, and his form had players, managers and journalists alike backing him for a place on England's flight to Brazil.

The 27-year old supplied the evidence for that sort of praise through his midfield control, eye for a pass and willingness to get forward and have a pop at goal. 

With 80 percent of his passes reaching their target and taking 1.7 shots per game–including a strike in City's semi-final win over Sheffield United—the former Tottenham man will be required in attack as well as his usual midfield station.

With key men Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic cup-tied for Saturday's final, Huddlestone will have to supplant Hull's attacking efforts if the Tigers are to deter Arsenal's march for the cup.

Furthermore, as if the tie needed any more spice, Huddlestone would surely love to have a hand in ruining the party for the Gunners—the club he spent nearly a decade at would be ecstatic, make no mistake.

In the battle for midfield possession, it will be up to the likes of Mikel Arteta and Aaron Ramsey to deter Huddlestone from his objectives.  Arteta, despite running out of puff on a few occasions this campaign, has been a mainstay in the Gunners' FA Cup charge and will likely figure in Wenger's plans on Saturday.

The Spaniard will need to be at his best to stop Huddlestone and claim his first FA Cup winners medal.

Matty Fryatt

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Life in the Premier League has proven difficult for Matty Fryatt this year, having not been chosen to start a single contest in league competition by his gaffer.

Yet in the FA Cup, with the absence of Long and Jelavic, Fryatt has found his niche and has come alive.  Four strikes in the tournament, including goals in both the quarter-final and semi-final, puts him at six for the year in all competitions, via BBC Sport.

Being in fine form—three goals in the last six games—there is little chance that it won't be Fryatt lining up to start at Wembley. 

Saturday is Fryatt's chance to prove himself in what is easily the most important football match of his career.  It's an opportunity to answer his doubters and respond to being overlooked throughout Hull's return campaign in the Premier League.

However, being frank, Fryatt will have to play out of his skin to contend with Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker.  The defensive pairing have been, for the most part, fantastic for Arsenal this year—and even if Fryatt finds himself in a goalscoring position, he'll have to beat semi-final hero Lukas Fabianski (if he starts).

It's up to Fryatt to find the net and make himself a cult hero at the KC Stadium. 

Improbable? Maybe—but by no means impossible.

Curtis Davies

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Curtis Davies has arguably been Hull's best player all year, and it's an opinion shared in and around the club.  The Tigers' vice-captain took home a prestigious double at City's end-of-season awards this week just past, collecting gongs for Player of the Season and Player's Player of the Season, via Hull Daily Mail.

It's almost impossible not to notice why Davies has been so vital to City's success this year.  Totalling almost three interceptions and nearly nine clearances a game in league competition, Davies has been consistent and reliable in amber and black this campaign.

It's not just in the league where he's shone, however.  Important goals in the Tigers' cup quest, against Brighton & Hove Albion and Sunderland, showcased his contributions at both ends of the pitch.

Across the board, Davies has been Steve Bruce's standout time and again in 2013/14.

He'll look to lead his defensive colleagues against the threat posed by Arsenal's frontmen–particularly Olivier Giroud.  The Frenchman will be forced to employ his trademark hold-up play and clever movement in order to outwit Davies and bring in cohorts like Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil in order to break down Hull's defensive front.

Make no mistake, Davies is hardly a world-class centre-back.  Yet he's been incredibly important for Hull this year, and he should be underestimated at Arsenal's peril.

Jake Livermore

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Another player with vested interests in Saturday's clash with Arsenal is Tottenham loanee, Jake Livermore.  The midfielder has been a constant fixture in Bruce's sides throughout the campaign, and his work on the ball has been perhaps even more eye-opening than his colleague Huddlestone.

With a very respectable 83 percent pass completion rate, and as City's leading assist-maker this campaign, Livermore will be looking to do exactly that and find himself in dangerous positions to create that final ball.

Such has been the quality of Livermore's performances in amber and black, he's declared himself more than keen to return to the KC Stadium as a Hull player next year, be it on another loan move or a permanent deal, via Hull Daily Mail.

A move of either variety might well be on the cards for next term, but if it isn't, Livermore will be more than motivated to make his stay a memorable one with a Wembley victory.

As with Huddlestone, Livermore will be counted by Arsenal's two more withdrawn midfielders, likely to be Arteta and another such as Ramsey.  It'll be up to them to negate Livermore's presence on the ball and force him into making poor decisions under pressure.

Allan McGregor

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Having returned from a sickening injury caused by a clash with Mohamed Diame of West Ham back in March, Allan McGregor was reinstated in City's starting lineup on Sunday against Everton.  The Scottish stopper looks set to retain that place in Saturday's cup final, and his return will prove some boon for Bruce's starting XI.

One of Hull's most consistent performers this term, the former Rangers and Besiktas 'keeper has shone in his first season in the East Riding of Yorkshire, proving himself as a reliable shot-stopper in front of what hasn't always been the most reliable of defenses.

Still, Davies and his cohorts will be delighted to have McGregor back in goal behind them—but whether he'll be able to stop the onslaught that Wenger's men hope to provide is another story.

Arsenal haven't been too short of goals recently, with strikes coming from all over the park and not solely the forward position.  Aaron Ramsey's wonderful, controlled volley is a perfect example of how the Gunners' midfielders contribute to scoring efforts—something McGregor must be on his toes for.

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Worried about Hull's formidable five? Or do you think this quintet will struggle on Saturday? Leave me your thoughts with a comment below, or find me on Twitter: @callumlarr.