FA Cup
Willock Brace Sees Arsenal Ease To Victory Over Blackpool In Rare “Home” Game Away From London For The Gunners
Unai Emery got his first taste of FA Cup action as Arsenal cruised to a 3-0 victory over Blackpool. The 13-time champions were desperate to avoid repeating their mistakes of last term, when they shockingly fell to lower league opposition at this stage. The Spaniard knows he must provide significant attention to the FA Cup, even though it pales in comparison to the club’s goal of reaching the Champions League.
If the Gunners fail to breach the top-4 or win the Europa League, an FA Cup triumph would still be considered a successful first season by much of the fan base. Knowing this, Emery expertly blended a mix of youth and experience into his starting 11. The Gunners were professional and dispatched their League One opposition without much difficulty. Two first-half goals from Joe Willock and a late gloss to the score line from Alex Iwobi saw the Gunners punch their ticket to the 4th round going away.
Blackpool Boycott Puts Kroenke Into Perspective for Arsenal Fans
Much of the intensity of the match was removed by the anticipated boycott by Blackpool fans. Fans have been staying away from Bloomfield Road in protest of the club’s controversial owner Owen Oysten. The despised owner has created a toxic environment at Blackpool due largely to his arrest for raping a 16 year old girl in the 1990s. Additionally, the flamboyant businessman has illegally divested millions from the club and fought the matter in protracted legal saga. The protest received a bizarre twist as a disgruntled fan drew further attention to the matter by sitting on the Arsenal bus. The coach was delayed until police were able to coax the man down and arrest him.
The result was what felt like a home match for Arsenal. If they had to play their opening match on the road, the Gunners couldn’t have picked a better place to play than Blackpool. Arsenal sold all of their 5,000 allotted tickets, with only a fraction of that number turning up in Blackpool orange.
With the January transfer window open, a microscope has been placed on Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke’s lack of investment. A report showed that the billionaire has invested none of his own money into the team over the past decade. This fact has become more infuriating than ever with the squad in desperate need of January reinforcements. Instead, he has committed millions to building a new stadium for his LA Rams NFL team. Arsenal fans’ gripes are understandable, but they will consider themselves lucky compared to their Blackpool counterparts.
Young Guns Shine
Every Arsenal player who saw the pitch gave a good account of themselves today. Aaron Ramsey was pulling the strings in midfield. Petr Cech made an outstanding save early to keep the score level. However, it was the teenagers the fans will be most proud of. Willock’s two close-range finishes saw him become the first teenager to score an FA Cup goal for Arsenal since 2010. Additionally, Eddie Nketiah looked lively in the striker role all night. The young Englishman could have had a brace himself before his compatriot opened the scoring.
Many were hoping to see 17 year old Bukayo Saka be handed a start. Instead, the youngest player in the squad only came on for a 7 minute cameo. Still, this was the second consecutive match he received minutes from Emery. Between him and 19 year old Reiss Nelson, Arsenal hope to have an internal solution to their need for wingers.
All Giants Still Yet to be Slain
Arsenal will be happy to advance to the 4th round of the competition. However, their joy will be tempered as their rivals all progressed as well. Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham survived their earlier 3rd round encounters with lower-league opposition. These sides will be hoping Liverpool or Manchester City succumb to the magic of the FA Cup later this weekend.
Photo credit to Dickson Dagogo via Flickr
