Sunday’s League Cup final is eagerly-awaited by a large number of Arsenal fans. Read on as a number of loyal supporters explained to Layth Yousif what the trophy means to them.

John Williamson

On Sunday I will be attending my sixth League Cup Final following The Arsenal. It may be low on Arsene Wenger’s priorities but it’s high on mine.

In the early 1970’s it was an opportunity to visit new grounds, where we used to go out quite early. The first semi-final I attended was against Liverpool where we narrowly lost on aggregate.

By the 1980’s the early round was a two-legged affair and as the team was progressing, so were our fortunes winning the cup in 1987 and losing a year later.

The 1990s saw us win it for a second time in 1993 and then the club started playing reserve teams, sometimes with relative success.

By the time we moved to the Emirates, we were seeing lots of younger players in the competition and with low entrance costs, they gained good experience playing in front of full stadiums.

This season, as a consequence of a European place, we have fielded stronger teams.

With my sixth League Cup final looming, as a fan who wants to win every match Arsenal play in, I’m excited to see us play in yet another final.

While we will be the underdogs, on our day we can beat them all – hope springs eternal and I for one can’t wait!

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Jon Spurling

When Arsenal start a season, there are only four silver pots they can win, assuming they qualify for Europe, and so the League Cup needs to be treated seriously. Historically, Arsenal have used success or failure in the competition as a spring board to go on to greater things. When they lost to Swindon in 1969, they regrouped, toughened up, addressed their weaknesses and went on to win the Fairs Cup in 1970 and the ‘71 Double.

When Arsenal won the Littlewoods Cup in ‘87, they showed that they could beat Liverpool and used it as a springboard for what they did at Anfield in ‘89. There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding Arsenal at present, and many feel that we should be aiming to win more than the League Cup but there are plenty of “big” clubs who would fall over themselves to win silverware of any kind, so Arsenal need to go for it on Sunday and upset the odds.

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Goonerholic

The EFL Cup has provided mixed emotions for supporters of my generation. We have played in seven finals and won just two of them to date. It may be the lowest in our list of priorities these days, but it is a trophy and one I would love to see us win again.

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She Wore

I almost pity any school kid (or adult on social media) dancing around as Arsenal managed to get fourth place. If you don’t want your team to win trophies I really don’t understand why you follow football. This Sunday we have a chance of a trophy, yes its now the 5th trophy on the pecking order and like 1987 we are up against currently the best team in the country, but I will be jumping about exactly like i did as a 14-year-old if we win. So lets just hope someone steps up like Charlie and doesn’t step out like Gus.

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Martin Wengrow

To me the League Cup is still an important competition. A day out at Wembley remains a great occasion as we AFC fans have learned again in recent years.It is also a potential sounding board for a team to bond, and move on to greater achievements together.

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Darren Boyle

The League Cup is the unloved tournament of domestic football. It is viewed as an embarrassment to take it seriously, yet, the victorious fans heading towards Wembley Park station as the sun disappears in the western sky on Sunday won’t care. It is a cup. It is our best chance of silverware this season. We’re not going to win the league, and admitting that in February is painful.

A victory on Sunday would diminish that pain. Winning silverware is never a bad thing. North London’s least successful manager, Mauricio Pochettino would kill for the opportunity.

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John Clubb

I have a real soft spot for the League Cup as it’s the first trophy that I saw us win in the flesh. After we’d won that game I remember saying to my pals that I could die a happy man now because I’d seen The Arsenal win a final at Wembley! I’ve been fortunate enough to be at all of our finals over the past 30 years but you never forget your first do you..??!

I have plenty of other great memories of the League Cup apart from the Littlewoods Cup semi-final replay against Spurs at White Hart Lane and the 1987 Littlewoods Cup final against Liverpool, The semi-final second leg in 1988 against a great Everton team being the best atmosphere I ever experienced at our beautiful home Highbury. For these reasons the League Cup will always be special to me, even though it clearly isn’t the competition it used to be.

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Ella M

A cup steeped in so much history, the League Cup has retained a special place in my family ever since Arsenal last lifted the trophy in 1993.

My Grandad was always the biggest Arsenal fan I knew and it was something that he managed to pass down the family that now extends to four generations.

I can’t claim to remembering too much of that final in February ’93, but it’s a story I heard over and over – from Arsenal fighting back to get the victory after going one nil down, to Steve Morrow breaking his arm in the winning celebrations!

My Grandad’s passion and love for the club has never been forgotten and if Arsenal manage to lift the trophy once again this weekend, I’ll be just as jubilant as he was then.

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Paul Antino

The league cup for me is the fourth most important achievement that can be obtained in the season. Beaten only by the winning of a trophy in Europe or either the Premier League or FA Cup. It comes before top four for me, but sadly the money in the game has meant qualification for Champions League would mean many would say I was talking rubbish, but I class success as trophies in the cabinet not pounds in the clubs bank account.

Days out at Wembley, for finals, should be the pinnacle for players and fans alike, along with the winning of league titles. So for me the league cup is still important and anyone who tells you the big clubs do not see it that way anymore, best studied the last four winners: Man City twice, Chelsea and Man. United. So there you have it, the facts speak for themselves, the big clubs want to still win it and Arsene does for sure, remember he has lost two finals and never won this trophy yet. So let’s hope he and the rest of us can put our league cup final voodoo behind us this Sunday because we have had a few bad days in these finals.

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Glenn Allen

As well as being a type of buffalo native to the Philippines the Carabao gives its name to a Thai energy drink that is the official sponsor of the latest iteration of what football supporters once referred to as The League Cup. As an Arsenal fan I could probably use a can or two because I do not have the energy nor the enthusiasm to attend this Sunday’s Wembley final against Man City.

As a club we are treading water and possibly best encapsulated by the pedestrian, side to side football played out on the pitch most weeks.

I can hear the howls of derision from other sets of fans who would dream of attending a Wembley final and I can hear the accompanying accusations of entitlement.

I understand all this but I write this purely as an Arsenal fan and one of many who feel disenchanted at the direction the board and manager have taken the club.

Please don’t get me wrong I will be watching the final on Sunday and I will cheer if we score and cheer even louder if we win.