English Soccer: Everton, Chelsea face off for FA Cup

By ALLON SINAI
Everton's search of a first title in 14 years can come to an end on Saturday when it plays Chelsea in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium. The Merseyside club hasn't won a significant trophy since it defeated Manchester United 1-0 in the 1995 FA Cup final, but David Moyes and his men will be coming up against a Chelsea side just as desperate to lift the cup. Chelsea could only manage a third-place finish in the Premier League, behind Liverpool and United, and suffered a dramatic Champions League semifinal loss to Barcelona, meaning Saturday's final is the club's last chance to win some silverware this season and avoid a second straight trophy-less campaign. "The thing is to control your nerves and the players have a lot of experience," said Chelsea coach Guus Hiddink, who will leave the club and return to his role as head coach of the Russian national team after the final. "The tension will come out automatically and I am sure our players can handle that." Both league meetings between Chelsea and Everton this season ended in goalless draws and Hiddink is full of admiration for Moyes. "I respect very much how David Moyes has made his team, not having the highest budget, and managing a team like that shows he is a very good professional," said Hiddink. "It is a tough team. They have shown it twice against Chelsea with two draws. They have very good tactical discipline and on top of that they have quality players who can make a difference. "They have very skilful and smart players and are a difficult team to play against." Everton striker Tim Cahill, who has experienced an FA Cup final before, losing to Manchester United with Millwall in 2004, is excited about the fact that this time his team has a realistic chance of winning the trophy. "It was some experience with Millwall but this is an experience where we know that we have a massive chance of winning," he told the The Liverpool Echo. "We have got to go into the game thinking that we can do it, as we normally do. We have so much belief; the gaffer believes in us and we believe in him." In the club's 121-year history, Everton has captured five FA Cups, while Chelsea has won just four titles in 105 years.