Chelsea may have been defeated by Arsenal in the FA Cup final, but Tottenham were just as big losers as the Blues.
They had much on the line when their two London rivals kicked off at Wembley, and Spurs fans went into Saturday’s match hoping Frank Lampard’s Blues would overcome the Gunners.
This is because Tottenham’s 2020/21 Europa League campaign would be affected by the outcome of the FA Cup final, with a win for Chelsea brilliant for Spurs but an Arsenal victory dealing them a huge blow.
And Arsenal got that oh so important win which actually secured them a place in next season’s Europa League, entering at the group stage along with Leicester who qualified due to finishing fifth in the Premier League.
Spurs finished sixth in the league so also qualified for the Europa League, but the outcome of the FA Cup final would determine at which stage they entered the competition.
A win for Chelsea would see Spurs straight into the group stage, but Arsenal’s victory means the Gunners kicked their local rivals down into the second qualifying round – with Mikel Arteta’s side taking the group stage spot in their stead.
This means Tottenham have to play THREE qualifying rounds just to reach the Europa League proper, with their first qualifying match due to take place on September 17 – only five days after the 2020/21 season has begun.
And while Spurs will be strong favorites against any of the opponents they could face in the second qualifying round, Jose Mourinho will not appreciate possible trips to Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the Faroe Islands or Estonia while attempting to traverse the opening weeks of the Premier League season.
The draw for the second qualifying round is scheduled for August 31, after both the preliminary and first qualifying rounds have taken place.
Unlike the traditional two-legged match format for the qualifying rounds, UEFA has due to coronavirus made the decision for all matches to be played as single legs, hosted by one of the teams decided by the draw, and with all games behind closed doors.
Wolves were also big losers of Arsenal winning the FA Cup, as they were denied a place in Europe altogether.
A Chelsea win in the Wembley showpiece would have resulted in Spurs entering the Europa League group stage, while Wolves would have been placed in the second qualifying round due to finishing seventh in the Premier League.
