(Football news) The Gunners boast an unrivalled 14 triumphs in the competition but have disappointed since last conquering the cup in 2020, while the Red Devils endeavour to retain the crown they clinched courtesy of their shock success versus Manchester City several months back.
A competition that will forever hold a special place in the hearts of Gooners across the globe, the FA Cup has provided the Arsenal faithful with some of their most cherished memories over the years, from the trio of triumphs during the twilight of Arsene Wenger’s reign to the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang-inspired beating of Chelsea five years back.
However, since lifting the trophy aloft at Wembley during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gunners have seen their FA Cup powers wane, suffering two third-round and two fourth-round exits over the last four seasons and falling at this exact hurdle to Liverpool in 2023-24.
Sticking with the theme of knockout disappointments, Mikel Arteta’s men begin their quest for FA Cup crown number 15, having surely thrown away their chances of EFL Cup stardom, losing 2-0 to Newcastle United in the first leg of their semi-final on Tuesday evening.
While Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon took their chances with aplomb, Arsenal wasted countless openings to breach the Magpies’ backline en route to their first home defeat of the season in any competition, one that came after an equally disheartening 1-1 Premier League draw at Brighton & Hove Albion.
The last time Arteta’s side suffered back-to-back losses at the Emirates Stadium, the second defeat in that sequence was coincidentally their FA Cup third-round beating at the hands of Liverpool last January, but the 14-time FA Cup winners are well-versed in ripping the trophy out of the holders’ grasp.
Indeed, Arsenal have beaten the team holding the FA Cup in each of their last six tournament games against the defending champions, and Arteta has already got one over upcoming visitor Ruben Amorim since the Portuguese took the Red Devils reigns, overseeing a 2-0 Emirates success just a matter of weeks ago.
Since succumbing to Arsenal’s set-piece expertise on that occasion, Man United have been walking in anything but a winter wonderland, leading to unironic talk of the 20-time English champions being involved in a relegation dogfight with half of the season gone.
However, Manchester United commence their FA Cup title defence having unexpectedly stolen a point off of runaway leaders Liverpool in last weekend’s 2-2 stalemate, one that could have seen Amorim’s men leave as the surprise victors had Harry Maguire not spurned a magnificent chance right at the death.
As praiseworthy as Manchester United’s Merseyside display was, that draw prolonged their winless sequence in all competitions to five matches—during which time they have conceded at least two goals in every game—and Amorim’s men have gone without a clean sheet in each of their last nine contests.
On the other hand, Manchester United have only conceded in one of their last 10 FA Cup third-round matches—advancing from each one—and the holders have come up trumps in three of their last four FA Cup showdowns with Arsenal, including a 3-1 Emirates win in 2019 where Alexis Sanchez returned to haunt his old employers.
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