Arsenal v Tottenham: The 1991 FA Cup semi-final recalled AS What about the whole Gazza thing? Because from the Arsenal side we all thought he was even more hyped up than usual. Something to do with our Cup final suits. He thought for some reason that we'd been fitted out for our gear already, as if we were cockily thinking the semi was a foregone conclusion. Sedge, you were a big mate of Gazza's. What do you remember? SS Well, Paul Stewart said to me he thought Gazza was acting a bit differently on the day, that he was revved up about something, but, to be honest, I was concentrating on my own job before the game and didn't really notice. DH Yeah, that was the rumour about the suits but I don't know. For our part, we didn't used to wear suits to games like Arsenal did. We went in our tracksuits to Wembley. SS And Gazza came in his moccasins, didn't he? Wore them with his tracksuit. AS We had a team meeting in the week leading up to the game when George Graham sat us down and asked us what we thought we should do to contain Gazza - man-mark him or line up normally. Paul Davis George was always worried about people like Gazza but as players we thought the boss was overly worried. I remember Michael Thomas being really annoyed on the day that he was having to run around chasing Gazza. I was the same because we thought we had more to offer than trying to mark someone out of the game. And we said that to George in the meeting but he stuck to his guns. AS That was the boss, though, wasn't it? He'd ask our opinion but you knew he was going to do what he wanted in the end. SS I've never heard about that man-marking thing before. It surprises me because you lot only lost one game that season on the way to becoming champions. Why not let people worry about you? DH And Gazza wasn't even fully fit. He'd had a hernia operation straight after the quarter-final and then he only played half a game at Norwich. He was definitely struggling, nowhere near fit. So although he scored that brilliant free-kick he wasn't the same player as in the first half of that season. AS Not a bad free-kick, though, eh? DH Well, because he was about 30 yards out, it didn't even cross my mind he would shoot. But then he took a 90-yard run-up like Bob Willis! I remember Gary Lineker jogging past him and saying, "just smash it." So he did. PD I was standing in the wall and you do think, "yeah, just go and hit it" because he was that far out. Dave Seaman apologised in the dressing room at half-time for letting it in, saying his studs got caught in the turf. He couldn't take off properly. AS Gary Lineker scored after that and then I scored just before half-time to make it 2-1 with what I remember being a magnificent far-post header! We hadn't really got started in that first half but we went into the dressing room thinking a comeback was on. DH Your goal was my fault really. Terry Venables put me on the left to try to stop Lee Dixon getting forward and getting crosses in to you. But I was breathing through my backside when I gave away the free-kick that you headed in. PD We played better in the second half, had a couple of chances, but then you broke away and Lineker got his second of the match. SS Wasn't Dave Seaman at fault for that one as well? He let it slip through his hands and that was so unlike him. I remember him having a brilliant season that year. DH In the league game at White Hart Lane he was absolutely unbelievable. It ended 0-0 and it was one of the best performances I'd ever seen from a goalkeeper. Made some great saves, kept out two one-on-ones. We were fortunate at Wembley that a great keeper had a bad day. AS How did Venables approach that semi? What were his tactics? DH He was always very good, always well prepared. He had developed a system with a five-man midfield, like many teams today, with Vinny Samways playing just behind Lineker, and Gazza drifting around. Paul Stewart, who had been a striker, had evolved into a holding midfielder by then. SS We had some very good players who could keep hold of the ball. When you do that you can rotate positions. You lose your shape if you keep giving the ball away. Vinny was an intelligent player. Dave here was disciplined as well. It was a good team with a good shape. AS So what was it like in your dressing room afterwards? You must have been chuffed to win a game like that against the old enemy. DH Oh, it was madness, chaos. Lots of people in there. We actually asked the gaffer if it was OK to go back out because we knew how much it meant to the supporters. This was a special occasion so we wanted to celebrate a bit more with our fans - quite unusual for a semi-final, I suppose. SS That was it. When all the fuss died down you realised that you hadn't won anything yet. AS Well, it was like a morgue in our dressing room. PD It's hard enough losing a semi-final but losing it to your local rivals was a real sickener. SS After winning the Cup that year we went to Hawaii and Japan on an end-of-season tour. We lost half the team at a stopover in Los Angeles! Some lads missed our connecting flight after playing cards at the airport bar. AS Two years after that we got our own back, didn't we? It wasn't a great game but our 1-0 win in the "93 semi was important. We couldn't afford to lose to you lot again. And we went on to win the final in a replay with Sheffield Wednesday. But what's going to happen this time? PD Well, after the last few results Spurs might be dangerous in this one. They've got a good system going, playing two up front, that has got some results. It's great to see the old 4-4-2 back in action, not just at Spurs but with a few other teams as well. Before Tim Sherwood took over, I'd have fancied us strongly but now it might be tighter. DH A lot will depend on Tottenham's injuries. Emmanuel Adebayor came off at Old Trafford the other day and he has been so important. Spurs don't have anyone else who can do that same job. But I've been really pleased with how Tim has got us playing, with more adventure. That could make for a better spectacle. AVB might have gone to the Emirates and tried to park the bus. But I do think Spurs will do well to get anything from the game. Arsenal might have a bit too much for them. AS So are you Spurs boys saying Arsenal are going to win this one? SS Nah, we can't say that! Maybe a draw. We need to play well at the Emirates, defend properly and counter-attack with pace. Aaron Lennon has come back to some form so that should help. AS We were talking about a shift in power at the start of this season when Arsenal lost their first game against Aston Villa and Spurs had bought all those players. It hasn't quite worked out that way yet, has it? PD We've managed to just keep ahead. There have been a couple of times when it looked like Spurs would overtake us but it hasn't quite happened. In the late Eighties and Nineties I felt we always had the measure of them. There was a joke going round saying if you wanted to know the result of the north London derby dial 2-1-2-1-2-1 because we seemed to always win 2-1. I do think the gap is smaller now though. AS What about Arsène Wenger, Davo? He has come under heavy pressure from the fans in the past but things look much brighter now. PD I'm a Wenger fan. I've always believed in him. Look at that "Invincibles" side. They played football like I'd never seen before in this country. It was always going to be difficult, impossible even, to replace that team. It has been frustrating at times when he hasn't spent money, but you ask the fans who they would bring in instead and they just can't give you an answer. DH I think the two sets of supporters are very similar in many ways - same walks of life in the same part of the world. I think they are very demanding because both have been spoilt in different eras. But it's very easy to go for the quick fix. You've got to be careful what you wish for. Arsène Wenger has got one hell of a record. AS OK chaps, time for predictions. I'll go 3-1 to Arsenal. PD Two or 3-1 to Arsenal. DH A high score draw. Maybe 2-2.