Minute after minute passed, but the score remained unchanged.
New Manchester United's defence became increasingly stable, while Arsenal's attacks grew more patient.
Both teams seemed to have settled into a cautious rhythm, each trying to find a safer way to break the other down.
Aside from the opening ten minutes, Curtis had done an excellent job restricting Henry.
The Frenchman was denied any clear chances and was increasingly forced to drop deeper to receive the ball.
With Essien, Curtis, and Kolo Touré working together, Arsenal's dangerous left side had also been contained.
Pires managed to send in several crosses, but Terry dealt with them calmly.
Bergkamp, under Terry's close attention, had barely been given a sight of goal.
There were only three minutes of normal time left in the first half.
Including stoppage time, perhaps five minutes remained.
Henry clearly had no intention of going into the break at 0-0.
Taking advantage of a stoppage, he moved closer to Pires and gave him a quick signal.
Pires immediately understood.
The two had played together for years.
One glance was enough.
In the 44th minute, Arsenal attacked again.
Henry dropped towards the left to receive possession, then carried the ball diagonally towards the edge of the penalty area.
Bergkamp began drifting towards the right.
Essien immediately closed Henry down.
Having already lost possession to Essien several times, Henry was more careful now.
He used his body to shield the ball, taking advantage of his long stride to keep Essien away from it.
Then, just as Bergkamp began his run, Henry subtly slipped the ball towards the right.
Ljungberg, who had been quiet for most of the half, suddenly burst forward.
He reached the pass just ahead of Evra and immediately drilled a low ball across the penalty area.
It was an excellent delivery.
The ball travelled through the corridor between goalkeeper and centre-backs, creating hesitation everywhere.
Bergkamp timed his run perfectly.
Terry stayed tight to him.
At the last instant, Bergkamp deliberately let the ball run.
Pires appeared from the opposite side.
Almost nobody had noticed his movement.
He arrived onto the ball and struck first time.
For a split second, everyone inside the Millennium Stadium thought Arsenal had scored.
Čech had already been drawn towards Bergkamp.
His balance was gone.
He was stranded towards the opposite side of the goal.
There seemed to be no possible way for him to stop Pires's shot.
Then another figure slid across the grass.
A leg appeared in front of the ball.
Block!
The shot deflected behind for a corner.
Once again, New Manchester United's goal survived.
...
"It's Curtis Davies!"
Andy Gray almost shouted.
"Unbelievable!
"Once again, New Manchester United have somehow stopped what looked like a certain Arsenal goal!
"First Terry, now Curtis!
"Twice their centre-backs have thrown themselves in front of shots at the last possible moment!"
The Red Rebels supporters erupted.
The score was still 0-0.
But this had been anything but a dull match.
The tempo had remained high.
Both teams moved the ball quickly.
One attacked.
One defended and countered.
Yet the football remained intense and absorbing.
Martin Tyler immediately disagreed with Gray.
"I wouldn't call that luck, Andy.
"This is something New Manchester United have shown before.
"Their defensive commitment is exceptional.
"We may not have noticed it as much in previous matches because most of their opponents weren't as strong as Arsenal.
"But this is a very resilient side."
"They certainly don't lack Liverpool's fighting spirit," Gray admitted.
"Not at all," Tyler replied with a smile.
"Their mentality is every bit as strong."
Gray chuckled.
"I wonder whether Arsène Wenger is starting to feel uncomfortable.
"Two years ago, Arsenal took the lead against Liverpool in the FA Cup final.
"Liverpool refused to give up, Owen scored twice, and Arsenal lost the trophy.
"Now we could be looking at another upset."
Tyler laughed.
"I'll disagree with you again, Andy.
"I don't think beating Arsenal would necessarily be an upset.
"Any team that reaches a final deserves the chance to win it.
"And New Manchester United are chasing a treble this season.
"Who can confidently say Arsenal are certain to beat them?"
Gray could only laugh and shake his head.
...
Pires delivered the corner towards the near post.
Curtis rose highest and cleared before any Arsenal player could reach it.
Hleb, who had dropped deep on the right, collected the second ball.
Then he accelerated.
Arsenal immediately began retreating.
Villa and Kaká sprinted forward through the centre.
Kaká moved towards the right to support Hleb.
One quick exchange between them took Gilberto Silva out of the move.
Ashley Cole was still deep inside New Manchester United's half.
Suddenly, enormous space opened in front of Hleb.
"Oh, look at this!"
Gray's voice rose sharply.
"New Manchester United are counter-attacking directly from Arsenal's corner!"
Hleb surged over the halfway line.
He kept going.
Towards the penalty area.
Keown was forced to step out.
Hleb laid the ball inside to Kaká.
Kaká immediately moved it on to Villa.
Villa turned and threaded a diagonal pass back into the penalty area.
Keown could not recover.
Hleb continued his run.
The ball reached him.
One-on-one.
"Hleb!"
He opened his body and calmly placed the ball beyond Seaman.
Goal!
"He's scored!"
Gray roared.
"Hleb gives New Manchester United the lead in first-half stoppage time!"
1-0!
The Red Rebels supporters exploded.
"Hleb carried the ball almost the entire length of Arsenal's half!
"Then Kaká, Villa, and Hleb combined beautifully to take Arsenal's defence apart!
"And Hleb finishes it calmly!"
Martin Tyler sounded just as excited.
"That was outstanding football.
"Kaká, Villa, and Hleb exchanged passes at speed, and Arsenal simply couldn't react.
"Gilberto Silva and Keown were left chasing shadows.
"They could only watch the move unfold in front of them."
Gray continued.
"This is exactly the kind of goal New Manchester United have scored all season.
"Quick combinations.
"One-touch football.
"Movement through tight spaces.
"And once again, Arsenal's ageing defence simply couldn't match the speed of the attack."
"This is efficiency," Tyler added.
"New Manchester United spent most of the first half under pressure.
"They created very little.
"But when the opportunity came, they punished Arsenal.
"And remember, they already had one goal disallowed for an extremely tight offside call.
"If that had stood, it could be 2-0 now."
On the touchline, Mourinho exploded into celebration.
He threw both arms into the air and sprinted several yards along the technical area.
Arsenal supporters responded furiously.
The Red Rebels supporters loved every second of it.
Their team was leading Arsenal in the FA Cup final.
"Magnificent!" Gray exclaimed.
"What resilience from New Manchester United!
"They've survived wave after wave of Arsenal pressure.
"Čech, Terry, Curtis, all of them have thrown themselves in front of danger.
"They've denied Arsenal three excellent chances.
"And now Hleb, Villa, and Kaká have produced a beautiful counter-attack to punish them."
Tyler nodded.
"Ashley Cole has to take some responsibility.
"He was too aggressive going forward.
"Once the corner broke down, his first thought had to be recovery.
"If he'd been in position, Keown wouldn't have been forced to step out and confront Hleb alone."
Gray agreed.
"And Mourinho's tactical plan is now obvious.
"He wanted to shut down Arsenal's left side first.
"Then he wanted to exploit the space Ashley Cole leaves behind when he goes forward.
"Villa, Kaká, and Hleb all have pace and technique.
"They're attacking Keown and Luzhny directly.
"And so far, it's worked."
...
The moment the ball hit the net, Wenger felt as though someone had driven a hammer into his chest.
He had expected the first half to end 0-0.
Perhaps Arsenal might even have taken the lead.
When Henry and the others launched that previous attack, Wenger had genuinely thought the goal was coming.
Instead, within seconds, Arsenal had conceded.
Across the touchline, Mourinho celebrated wildly.
Wenger's expression turned cold.
He knew exactly what would happen now.
New Manchester United would become even more committed to their counter-attacking approach in the second half.
They were ahead.
Mourinho would be a fool to change what was working.
And because Arsenal were behind, Wenger's team would have no choice but to push forward.
That would expose even more space behind their defence.
Exactly the kind of space New Manchester United wanted.
At that moment, Wenger missed Cygan.
He missed Vieira even more.
If Vieira had been available, Arsenal's midfield would have looked completely different.
He could defend.
He could carry the ball forward.
He could protect the back line.
He could support the attack.
His presence would have given Arsenal far more control.
Instead, four players Wenger had admired before the match had all played decisive roles in frustrating him.
Hleb.
Kaká.
Curtis.
Čech.
Curtis had recovered from his shaky opening and was now making Henry's life increasingly difficult.
Hleb and Kaká were tormenting Arsenal in transition.
Čech had already produced several important saves.
If only I had signed them earlier...
For an instant, Wenger could not stop the thought.
If Arsenal had brought even some of these players to Highbury before now, perhaps they would be wearing red and white instead.
That thought reignited his desire to strengthen the squad.
But Arsenal's financial situation made everything difficult.
He could not simply buy every player he wanted.
At best, he might be able to choose one.
And choosing would be painful.
Hleb could strengthen the wings.
Kaká could add another dimension through the middle, make late runs beyond Henry, and significantly improve Arsenal's attacking combinations.
Curtis would solve a major long-term problem at centre-back.
So would Terry, for that matter.
Sometimes Wenger genuinely resented Ethan.
How had one club managed to secure two of England's best young centre-backs at the same time?
Then there was Čech.
Seaman was nearing the end.
Čech was young, already an international, and now eligible for a work permit.
He looked like an ideal successor.
But whenever Wenger thought about approaching Ethan, his head began to ache.
Everyone in English football knew how difficult he was to negotiate with.
Given Arsenal's finances, Wenger might barely be able to afford one of New Manchester United's stars.
And even then, Ethan might refuse to sell.
Damn it.
For perhaps the first time that afternoon, Wenger genuinely wanted to swear.
But the thought passed quickly.
He forced himself to refocus.
Arsenal were 1-0 down.
That was the reality.
Now he needed to decide how to attack New Manchester United in the second half.
And the more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he became.
Against Mourinho's team, there were very few obvious solutions.
The referee blew for half-time.
Wenger was already walking towards the tunnel.
On the opposite side, Mourinho had disappeared into the dressing room even earlier.
Both managers had work to do.
The second half would decide the FA Cup.
(To be continued.)