Arsene Wenger never won the League Cup during his 22-year tenure at Arsenal, a record Mikel Arteta hopes to end when his side face Chelsea in the semi-final second leg on Tuesday night. The Gunners hold a 3-2 lead from the first leg, putting them 90 minutes from a final appearance. Arteta would become the first Arsenal manager to win the competition since George Graham in 1993, succeeding where Wenger repeatedly failed.
Wenger's most damaging exit came in the 2011 final against Birmingham City, when a defensive mix-up allowed Obafemi Martins to score a late winner. Arsenal had equalised through Robin van Persie but were beaten 2-1, prolonging their trophy drought. The defeat was seen as a missed opportunity to end a barren spell that would last until the 2014 FA Cup.
Another low point was the 2012 quarter-final loss to League Two Bradford City on penalties. Arsenal needed an 88th-minute equaliser to force extra time but lost the shootout after Thomas Vermaelen missed the decisive spot-kick. Wenger claimed the team did not need to be embarrassed, but the defeat to a side two divisions below was widely criticised.
In 2008, Arsenal's young side was humbled 2-0 by Championship outfit Burnley in the quarter-finals. Errors from goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski and an inexperienced XI featuring teenagers Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey led to a limp exit. The defeat highlighted Wenger's policy of using the competition to blood youngsters, a strategy that often backfired.
The 2007 semi-final against Tottenham was particularly painful, as Arsenal lost 5-1 at White Hart Lane after a 1-1 draw in the first leg. It was Tottenham's first win over their arch-rivals since 1999, and Arsenal trailed 4-0 at one point. The heavy defeat to their neighbours was one of the most embarrassing results of Wenger's reign.
Arteta now has the chance to banish these memories by leading Arsenal to the final. A win over Chelsea would see him succeed where Wenger could not, ending a 31-year wait for the club to lift the League Cup.
