Arsenal's 2014/2015 season was an emotional rollercoaster for many reasons. The campaign began in mediocre fashion as they won just two of their opening eight matches, nevertheless their season culminated in perfect fashion as they secured a record 12th FA Cup trophy last weekend, beating Aston Villa 4-0 at Wembley. Here's a detailed review of their five games from last season.

5. Arsenal 4-1 Newcastle:

Whilst this was a fine performance from the Gunners, the win over Alan Pardew’s men was enthralling due mainly to the context and timing of the victory. Just one week prior, they had suffered a 3-2 loss away to Stoke, where they trailed 3-0 at the interval, and Arsène Wenger received abuse from his own supporters at Stoke train station.. The supporters were fractious, the team were lacking confidence and Newcastle were in excellent form, therefore this victory was particularly pleasing.

Arsenal played some stunning football, with Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla both netting braces in a convincing victory. Giroud opened the scoring with a fine header after non-existent Newcastle marking. Just after the interval, their lead was extended due to a cute finish from Cazorla, before Giroud demonstrated his deft touch to hand the Gunners a 3-0 advantage. Ayoze Perez gave the Geordies some slender hope with a stooping header, but victory was assured thanks to Cazorla’s outrageous penalty in the 88th minute.

After their recent travails it was a much-needed boost for the club. Chants of ‘One Arsène Wenger’ rang out at the Emirates Stadium toward the latter stages of the contest, in retaliation to the verbal abuse he suffered seven days previously. This appeared to galvanise the entire squad and they produced a tremendous team-performance in the face of intense media scrutiny. When a manager is under the spotlight, the team’s response on the pitch predominantly illustrates whether they believe in or value their manager; this Arsenal display left us in no doubt on this matter.

4. Arsenal 4-1 Liverpool:

Liverpool travelled to the Emirates on the back of a desperately disappointing 2-1 home defeat to Manchester United. Prior to their home defeat against van Gaal’s side, they had enjoyed a 13-match unbeaten run but, given the consistency of Arsenal and Unite,d their top four hopes were hanging by a thread. Victory for Arsenal would virtually have assured their top four spot. They managed to secure victory, and did so in comprehensive fashion.

Liverpool’s defensive duo of Mamadou Sakho and Kolo Toure were particularly ponderous in the opening stages; Arsenal began at an electric pace, closing them down relentlessly and reclaiming possession in very dangerous areas. However, they were unable to capitalise on their early dominance and were left relieved after Raheem Sterling squandered a golden opportunity.

However, the North Londoner’s emerging right-back, Hector Bellerin, opened the scoring after 30 minutes. Patient build-up play from the Gunners ensued, before Bellerin coolly slotted his effort into the far corner of Simon Mignolet’s net. Mesut Ozil extended their lead moments later, his free-kick from the edge of the area giving Mignolet no chance whatsoever. Liverpool were stunned and could not cope with the Gunners’ intensity; Alexis Sanchez compounded their misery moments later, picking up the loose ball before firing a brilliant effort into the roof of the net.

This gave Arsenal a commanding 3-0 lead at the interval and Liverpool never responded; eventually slumping to a 4-1 defeat. After their painful 5-1 thumping at Anfield in 2014, it was sweet revenge for Arsene Wenger, and a further indication of their new-found ‘big-game’ prowess.

3. Manchester Utd 1-2 Arsenal:

As Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham, Everton and Southampton all exited at the fourth round stage of the FA Cup, Manchester United and Arsenal were the clear favourites, until both sides drew each-other in the quarter-finals. Arsenal were desperate to retain their coveted FA Cup trophy, whilst Louis van Gaal was determined to silence critics and secure silverware in his first season at Old Trafford.

The Gunners would take solace from beating Manchester City just weeks earlier, however their record at Old Trafford over the last decade has been underwhelming to say the least; they have only enjoyed the solitary victory in that period, in September 2006.

However, Wenger’s men delivered another fantastic away performance in Manchester, to reach the semi-finals and prove that their win over City was certainly no fluke. Their shape and formation was similar to their set-up against Manuel Pellegrini’s side. They were combative and resolute defensively; allowing the host’s to monopolise possession, but they were a constant danger on the counter-attack, as they operated with pace and purpose. Danny Welbeck was selected to face his former side, ahead of Olivier Giroud and it proved to be a master-stroke from the veteran Frenchman.

Wayne Rooney cancelled out Nacho Monreal’s well-constructed opener, so the contest was evenly poised at 1-1 at the hour mark. However, Antonio Valencia’s under-hit back pass after 61 minutes put David De Gea under pressure, which let Welbeck pounce. Welbeck got a crucial touch to the ball ahead of an onrushing De Gea; after rounding the keeper, he coolly stroked the ball into the unguarded net, which sparked jubilant scenes from 9,000 travelling Arsenal fans, and an outpouring of emotion from the former United forward.

Louis van Gaal had justified the sale of Danny Welbeck in August, by quoting his goal-to-game ratio, declaring that he wasn’t ‘good enough’ to play for Manchester United'. As the ball trickled into the net, you could see the relief on Welbeck’s face and he celebrated with a sense of vindication. After the sale of Robin van Persie to Manchester Utd in 2012, Gunners fans had endured many painful moments involving their former Dutch captain, so they thoroughly enjoyed the role-reversal on this chilly Monday evening.

It was a thoroughly deserved win for Arsene Wenger’s side and another indication of their big-game potential. This victory was undoubtedly the catalyst for Arsenal’s record 12th FA Cup, taking them one ahead of Manchester United in the process. Retaining any trophy is an extremely difficult task and Arsenal’s route was far from straight-forward, however apart from the final victory itself, this result was certainly the most gratifying.

2. Manchester City 0-2 Arsenal:

This was a seminal moment in Arsenal’s season. The Gunners were floundering in sixth position prior to the showdown at the Etihad, and were desperate for a tonic to kick-start their campaign. Their miserable away record against their main rivals has been well publicised over recent years; one of the principal reasons given by pundits as to why Arsène Wenger’s side are incapable of mounting a genuine title challenge.

Wenger has been accused of being tactically naïve in the big games. At their free-flowing best, the North Londoners are an absolute joy to watch, nevertheless against top opposition you must be tenacious, defensively resilient and determined. These are qualities that many believe Arsenal lack, however these attributes were firmly in evidence against Manuel Pellegrini’s side.

It was arguably one of Arsenal’s most impressive performances in recent years. They were fantastic defensively; Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker were superb at the heart of the defence, whilst full-backs Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal barely wavered against the threat of David Silva and Jesus Navas.

However, the entire Arsenal midfield was fantastic. Francis Coquelin, whose days at the Emirates appeared numbered when he was sent to Charlton on loan just months earlier, was an imposing presence in defensive midfield. He capitalised on ponderous and insipid City possession to break up the play, whilst also leading Arsenal’s relentless closing down, which completely stifled City’s creative sources.

Santi Cazorla arguably produced one of the most complete midfield performances in recent memory at the home of the 2013/14 Premier League Champions. He was deployed in a deeper midfield role, which he subsequently occupied for the duration of the campaign.

Cazorla played a prominent role in both goals; scoring the penalty after Nacho Monreal was upended by Vincent Kompany, before delivering the probing cross which led to Olivier Giroud’s deft header. Nevertheless, the Spaniard’s tireless work-rate and phenomenal control in possession exemplified the character and class within this Arsenal side.

Since Christmas, Arsenal have been the form side in the Premier League; producing scintillating offensive performances, along with hard-fought tenacious victories. Injuries in the early stages of the campaign stifled their momentum, but there is now a wave of optimism around the Emirates ahead of next season. With a vast improvement in their ‘big-game’ mentality evidenced in the second-half of the campaign, Arsenal fans are bullish about their title chances in 2015/16.

1. Arsenal 4-0 Aston Villa:

Arsenal arguably saved their best performance of the season for their last and most important contest, the FA Cup final. The Gunners were vying to secure a record 12th FA Cup, which would have taken Wenger level with George Ramsay’s haul of six victories. Although they had enjoyed a fantastic record in the competition over the last two years, their performances at Wembley had been rather underwhelming.

They had beaten Wigan on penalties in last year’s semi-final, whilst recovering from 2-0 down to beat Hull 3-2 in last year’s dramatic final. They edged past Reading 2-1 in extra-time in April, due to a howler from Adam Federici, so the sense of optimism amongst Gunners fans was tinged with an element of caution.

However, the prior concerns were completely unnecessary, as they dominated the encounter from start to finish. Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott spurned a couple of chances, whilst Shay Given saved superbly from Laurent Koscielny; it was a major source of frustration that the dominance wasn’t being reflected on the scoreboard, but this changed after 40 minutes. Alexis Sanchez rose furthest to head Nacho Monreal’s searching cross into the path of Theo Walcott, who finished emphatically on the half-volley.

Arsenal’s lead was extended almost immediately after the interval, thanks to individual brilliance from the remarkable Sanchez. He picked up the loose ball approximately 30-yards out and with little sight of goal, he unleashed a blistering effort that bamboozled Given and rocketed into the net via the crossbar. The swerve and dip on the shot was incredible and it was somewhat fitting that the decisive blow was delivered by Arsenal’s most impressive performer over the course of the season.

Arsenal skipper Per Mertesacker sealed the victory beyond any reasonable doubt, inadvertently shouldering the ball into the net after Christian Benteke let the German roam free in the area. Olivier Giroud completed the rout in additional time, with a trademark near post flick from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s pinpoint delivery.

It was an extremely satisfying team performance. Defensively Arsenal were magnificent, completely limiting the supply to Benteke and Jack Grealish, restricting them to the solitary shot in the entire 90 minutes. The midfield duo of Coquelin and Cazorla were superbly efficient in breaking up the play and initiating attacks, whilst the likes of Ozil, Ramsey, Alexis and Theo caused chaos in the Villa backline. The main criticism levelled at last year’s Arsenal side was their poor mentality in decisive games but the critics have predominantly been silenced and on the grandest stage of English football. Arsenal showcased their character, quality and class.