Arsenal: Arsene Wenger urges players to use WBA game as marker for FA Cup final

Arsene Wenger believes that having something to play for against West Bromwich Albion will give the Gunners some motivation to play for and not let them shutdown ahead of the FA Cup final.

The Gunners have made it to the finals of the FA Cup for the second time in succession, beating Hull City to the trophy, thus ending their nine-year wait without a trophy. It will also be Wenger's sixth FA Cup title should they win it again, the maximum by a manager since the Premier League was conceived in 1992.

The north London club have met a lean patch in the league, failing to score in their last three home games, drawing against Chelsea and Sunderland while losing to Swansea.

Wenger believes it is their chance to get back into the scoresheet and put a marker before the final next week, where Aston Villa are likely to play defensively and act on the counter with the pace of Christian Benteke and the guile of Jack Grealish.

"Every season we have had to focus until the last minute. So sometimes you would like to play a game where there is no pressure. But finally when you have one, you get bored, so at least we have to keep the concentration and it's better," Wenger told Arsenal's official website.

"When you switch off it's always difficult to switch on again. You always think 'OK we'll switch on', but it's not like that. When you switch off it is always difficult to switch on again, it's not like when you switch on a light."

"Swansea came here and played four-six, no striker, Sunderland defended very well and in both games the two goalkeepers had exceptional games. I am not especially concerned, let's just focus on our game.

"What is important is to finish well and to score again. We are a team that can score goals, we want to finish on a high and secure that third place," he concluded.