Another HUGE FA cup obstacle gone as Wembley beckons Arsenal

Arsenal still have a very big hurdle of our own to jump in the FA cup tomorrow, with the visitors Middlesborough in really ominous form and having the same sort of strong defensive set-up and counter attacking style that has hurt Arsenal so often in recent years.

But after them beating Man City in the last round was just one of many cup upsets, at least there is little chance that the Gunners will be caught with our pants down. And as long as Arsene Wenger and the lads do avoid this banana skin and get through to the next round, the amount of big clubs that will be missing from the quarter-final draw gives us a really great chance of retaining the famous old trophy for just the second time in our history.

Another win at Wembley in May would also make Arsenal the most successful club in the competition, an honour we currently share with Manchester United. It would also make Arsene Wenger the joint most successful manager in the FA cup by giving him a sixth success to match the achievement of George Ramsay of Aston Villa nearly 100 years ago.

So the manager and club will have been delighted to see another big obstacle removed today. I am not talking about West Ham who were thrashed by West Brom. I am talking about Stoke City who were knocked out by Championship club Blackburn Rovers, who did the same to us a couple of years ago.

As I looked at the possible draws Arsenal could get in the quarters, assuming we get there, an away tie with Stoke was a massive worry and now we know that will not happen. I would rather get Man United or Liverpool than Stoke away because we always lose at the Britannia.

Now let’s make the most of our good fortune and see off Middlesborough. Is another Wembley final written in the stars for the Gunners?

Tags Stoke Wenger West Ham

20 Comments

  1. Come on gunners its another day at the office tomorrow! Lets take care of business and beat middlesborough! Coyg!

  2. Actually I was more worried by Stoke than United or Liverpool. Everytime we play Stoke I’m worried about theor defense and their aggressive play. I’m scared of Injuries they can inflict

    Honestly, I feel very confident that we can beat any team left in the competition as long as the right players are put on the field and we play with passion and play hard.

    Anyway, at the moment I’m only focused on M’borough

    3-0
    COYG

  3. From Eplindex.com
    Patrick Bamford – Middlesbrough

    Bamford has come of age and shown what he is capable of on a consistent basis for Karanka’s side. He’s already scored 8 goals in the Championship and 1 in the league cup at Anfield against Liverpool so he is one that is unfazed about the opponents. He’s their second highest scorer and also a player who can create goal-scoring chances for others as this 21-year old has set up 15 opportunities in 21 appearances. A commendable shot accuracy of 52% with an equally impressive 1 goal from every 3 shots on target, he comes across as a lad that can cause some damage. Bamford holds the key to Middlesbrough’s chances of causing an upset.

  4. Liverpool was lucky to get through next round, hope Man U doesn’t win tomorrow and we beat Middleborough without any our players injury. Can’t wait to see Gabriel’s first game for Arsenal.

  5. Interesting Statistics.
    These two sides have not met since 2009 when Arsenal won 2-0 at the Emirates.
    The last time Middlesbrough beat Arsenal away from home was in 2004 when they won at Highbury in the League Cup.
    The two sides have met 124 times in their history.
    Arsenal have won 61 of those, with Boro winning 31, and 32 of them have been draws.
    Middlesbrough are unbeaten in their last 10 matches in all competitions.
    Arsenal haven’t lost in the FA Cup since they lost to Blackburn at home in the fifth round in 2013.

  6. More fact and stats analysis. (tell me if you don’t care)
    Patrick Bamford, on loan from Chelsea grabbed the crucial first goal and terrorised the Manchester City back line in the second half during Middlesbrough 2-0 win at the ethiad stadium.
    He had a very successful loan spell so far scoring 11 goals in only 20 starts. He’s shown he can score against the best.
    Middlesbrough lost to Liverpool in the league cup on an incredible penalty shoutout 13-14 after drawing 2-2 in the 120mn battle in which Barmford scored too(from a penalty kick).
    And like against City they were hugely under pressure as they only recorded 28% ball possession, conceding way more corner than their oponent(14-5) and making a lot more faults(20-12) but strangly having almost the same amount of on target shots(5-7) while having had a lot less scoring opportunities.
    The stats where very, very similar against city. They have the best defence by far in the championship and are making every offensive display count.

  7. I think we will see how important Giroud’s hold up play is as he will allow us to slowly push their deffensive line back and give us the much needed space to score.
    Unless Ramsey sleeping football genious awakes… in that case, forget everything, he’ll have a walk in the park. 🙂 lets hope.

  8. When they are talking about how good Bamford is some sick Arsenal fans are talking about Giroud’s hold-up play.Is hold-up play going to win you matches?

  9. Bamford is only 21 and fulfilling his potential while Wilshere is still waiting until he is 30 to do same,he still thinks himself a kid.

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