Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has admitted that Arsenal deserved their 2-1 victory over his side in the final of the FA Cup this afternoon.
The Gunners were on top for the vast majority of the all-London clash at Wembley, taking the lead inside five minutes before Aaron Ramsey's winner sealed the trophy after Diego Costa had equalised for the 10-man Blues.
Courtois acknowledged that referee Anthony Taylor was right to show Victor Moses a second yellow card for diving, but believes that the official was wrong to allow Alexis Sanchez's opener to stand after questions over a handball and an offside.
"We are obviously disappointed but I want to say congratulations to Arsenal. They played a good game," Courtois told reporters.
"The first goal should never have been allowed - it was clearly a hand ball and then Ramsey was offside because he was interfering in play. After that goal, we tried to play but they deserved it. Then we went down to 10 men and the red card was correct. Victor Moses doesn't need to apologise.
"I wouldn't say we were surprised because for the last four or five games in the league, Arsenal upped their game so we expected a hard game. When you score, you get momentum and can build on that. We tried but obviously not enough. If you play in a final you build up to that and maybe they did that more because we already won the league."
The wins means that Arsenal have now won the FA Cup 13 times in their history, more than any other club.
Barney Corkhill
