After a series of nail biting Premier League fixtures, the prospect of a stress free day out in Mansfield was most appealing to me. The Arsenal players bought into the mood too and seemed to switch into their pre-season friendly mode with tippy tappy, flicks and tricks which look great on an Emirates quality smooth pitch, but the surface at Field Mill was sticky, bobbly and lived up to its name, and I don’t mean the mill part.
Arteta got thoroughly into the spirit of things by going three at the back and picking five goal scorers although the goal scoring bit was debatable.
Ok, maybe I’m being too harsh because Max Dowman became the youngest player ever to represent Arsenal in the FA Cup, along with the composed Marli Salmon meaning that Arsenal began a major game with two 16 year olds in the starting XI, which has never happened before at Arsenal and possibly at any top division club.
Arteta lent into the experience of Norgaard, Kepa, Jesus, Trossard and Havertz, with the last three rotating positions between midfield and attack. Martinelli and Madueke brought their pace and unpredictability to the flanks which means you never know what you were going to get from them, with Dowman showing off his full repertoire but with his finishing needing some more work, Arsenal looked well capable.
With 2 minutes gone the Mansfield players had already dished out three yellowish fouls showing they meant business but on the 4th minute the impressive, as it turned out, Mansfield goalkeeper played a loose forward pass and Dowman was on it in a flash. Max surged towards goal but his shot lacked conviction and it was saved by the goalkeeper. A minute later Mosquera has a shot deflected over the bar as Arsenal pressed for an early goal.
Arsenal’s passing wasn’t at its best, our players perhaps struggling to adapt to the sticky surface. Under hit and misplaced passes stymied our rhythm and Mansfield got well back into things. Mosquera was knocked out of his comfort zone by a Mansfield player who swept past him and crossed dangerously on the 11th minute, Kepa made two big saves as the ball ricocheted around the Arsenal box – this wasn’t meant to happen!
Two minutes later a dangerous drive flew past Kepa’s far post – did he have it covered, I’m not too sure on that. Then on 17 minutes a Dowman pass went astray which led to another attempt on goal. Okay, this was a makeshift Arsenal team and it was a very young defence but we needed to see more from our lads because these kinds of performances can lead to cup upsets! On 23 finally we got to grips and Trossard found himself set to open the scoring but his shot went wastefully over the bar. Two minutes later good approach work saw Dowman find Martinelli but the goalkeeper saved, he looked a solid shot-stopper. From the corner Madueke almost bent it home but it thudded back off of the post and to Dowman whose follow up shot was blocked.
On 29 minutes a great run from inside his own half by Trossard left the Mansfield back line exposed, his pass found Dowman bearing down on goal but again the finish lacked enough punch and the keeper saved. Two minutes later Madueke set himself for a shot on goal but blasted it high over the bar and into somebody’s back garden, classic Noni. Up to this point Jesus had been simply anonymous then on 33minutes a Trossard stumble led to a dangerous situation on our left being exposed but fortunately the cross was fired in straight at Kepa who gratefully fell onto the ball.
Marli Salmon showed his composure and anticipation by snuffing out a threatening break on 36 minutes, he really caught the eye with his use of the ball and his reading of the game, a classic case of less is more.
Trossard went down worryingly on 38 holding the back of his thigh which is exactly what we needed to bloody avoid, off he went for Hincapie and the defence redeployed into a more settled back four with Norgaard holding in front.
It looked as if we were heading to towards a goal-less half time break then Noni got his head in gear. He had a rasping shot on 41 minutes which their keeper parried but the ball ran to Martinelli and he slipped the ball back inside to Noni who had ran across the face of goal. Noni steadied himself and fired across the goalkeeper to open the scoring. It looked so easy when you do the easy things properly. A minute later as Mansfield responded a long pass found Noni in on goal but he screwed his shot well wide, hit and miss from our winger and at the break it was H/T 0-1
On 48 minutes Arsenal persevered with the short corners and a Dowman chip was headed clear, a minute later another short corner saw Noni chip into the box where a Jesus header was easily saved. Not long afterwards the home fans were rocking as a Salmon pass to Mosquera was under hit and for some reason Cristian backed away from a 50/50 challenge you’d expect him to win and the Mansfield forward rounded him, squeezing a low shot under the dive of Kepa. It was such an avoidable goal. So FA Cup but so annoying. Now it was anyone’s game.
Arsenal responded and on 54 Dowman went on a great run but again his shot lacked punch, this was becoming a theme for Max, one I hope he rectifies. On 62 minutes Arteta decided to make two changes and off came the tiring Salmon to be replaced by Timber and Eze replaced a Havertz still trying to recapture his form. Two minutes later a great break by Madueke found Dowman whose astute pass fed Jesus but another chance was frittered away. Finally on 66 minutes the scourge of North 17 showed everyone how to strike a ball, Norgaard found Eze loitering just on the D and he spun and buried his shot with the minimum of fuss. That’s it lads, just put your foot through it.
That knocked the steam out of the home fans and an increasingly annoying commentator on TNT Sports. Mansfield to their credit kept fighting but their intensity decreased noticeably. Arsenal managed the following few minutes then on 77 Arteta made his last two changes as Calafiori went off with a Trossard style thigh injury to be replaced by new boy Dixon on debut and a tiring Dowman went off for Saka, a game management change I think. Dixon almost immediately gave away possession with a poor pass and it led to the crowd screaming for a penalty as Mosquera dived in to stop a dangerous situation. He got the ball but I sensed the referee’s arm twitching. Dixon in his cameo showed he isn’t Lee Dixon but hopefully he’ll learn…
Arsenal continued to probe for the 3rd goal but the finishing continued to frustrate, on 82 Madueke broke forward and found Saka overlapping, Bakayo inexplicably slowed down almost inviting a challenge but eventually got off a shot that the goalkeeper smothered, then Jesus capped a forgettable performance by wastefully blasting over the bar. I hope all those Serie A clubs that are supposedly interested in him were scouting elsewhere whilst our game was going on.
As the game went into 6 minutes of added time a break from Saka found Martinelli but unsurprisingly he shot wide and there was just enough time for Hincapie to snuff out a Mansfield break with a perfectly timed sliding tackle – I love that guy. That was that, we’re in the hat for the quarter-finals and three wins from a trophy.
A bit of a mix n match game, some great approach play and some woeful finishing. Mosquera was a tad nervy at times, he missed having either Saliba or Gabriel alongside him but central defenders start out rash before maturing into a rich fruity Merlot. Salmon was almost Salibaesque showing a composure I’ve not seen from a teenage centre back since David O’Leary, who was at the game. Dowman was full of energy and invention but he needs to work on his shooting and finishing, that’ll come as he grows stronger whilst Dixon needs to work a lot harder on his distribution.
The big worry is the fitness of Trossard and Calafiori, with the must win games stacking up we don’t need an injury crisis thank you very much.
We still march on…
By Kev.
I have always said that playing on pitches that are not the same quality of Premier League pitches must be difficult for the players. Bobbly, bumpy, muddy! 😫 Looking back at the FA Cup games involving Prem League teams playing away at League One /Two grounds, none of them have found it easy. Yes we must also take into account that the FA Cup for these smaller teams means a lot to them so they will give more than their best.
Agree Laura, and that pitch was a mess..
Great day for Mansfield, they sure put up a fight.
Morning Kev, all. Thank you for another good post.
Tough and very tight game but great to see the young guns play. Salmon will learn from his short pass as will Mosquera from his soft attempt at defending I’m sure. Heinze will be on his case. lol
The best part is Zubimendi, Rice, Gabriel and Saliba getting a break, Havertz getting minutes on the pitch and both Timber and Odegaard having had another week to get fit.
Good morning Kev, another good un thanks.
Did Arteta have a look at the pitch before his pre-match team talk? If so he should warned them that flicks and tricks would be a dodgy option and keeping the ball in the air would be more productive.
A two-one win means another potential banana skin neatly avoided.
You’d like to think they’d know the pitch would be a bit bumpy. lol
Morning Gooners, morning Rico, cheers Cicero/Rico, I saw some mobile phone video from the Mansfield away dressing room and it reminded me of the Essex &Herts Border Combination, a bit of an eye opener for our players. To their credit they dug in and weren’t put off by the facilities, I’m sure that Arteta had them switched on anyway. To their credit and after the opening few minutes and those emotionally driven fouls, Mansfield actually started to play but then Clough is a football manager.
Yes Kev we are still marching , but sometimes you think it;s a kind of military two step , two forward one back. We don’t seem to be able to avoid the little niggles of the Wenger era and it always seems to be the same old subjects that go down for a short period before they get turned out again to go back down .
Looking at the young ones that we saw yesterday Salmon showed enough to be considered as the back up at right back , very calm and hardly put a foot wrong and although his pass to Mosquera was light I thought at the time that he should never have received the ball in the first place . Sometimes you have to look at the cause rather than the effect.
Dowman is a special case but learned a hard lesson yesterday , playing for the first team is not like playing in the under 19’s . It’s hard and you have to be stronger and you don’t earn the right to stroke the ball into the net as the goalkeepers are just so much better. He could have had a hat trick but the good bit is that he made the opportunities and got into the positions to do so.
Dixon like a;ll of our Hale Enders is good on the ball and experience will give him the positional sense and his first pass mistake ,I am putting down to quite understandable nerves , 20 minutes alongside Saliba will set him right.
So we are into the quarters along with Chelsea , Man City and Liverpool and looking at today’s fixtures there are no duff bunnies left , so our next selection will have to be stronger if we want another trip to Wembley . As we are still in the 4 competitions fitness is going to be as critical as form .
Firstly you have to give a lot of credit to Mansfield,they played really well.
For us Dowman was the star I thought Salmon was good too,I felt sorry for him with the goal,Mosquera didn’t help though,a great finish though,our goals weren’t bad either .
Madueke had one of his better days,he’s always going to be a bit hit and miss.
Funny enough even though Kepa was mostly good,I thought he could have done better with their goal.
He will probably play in the League Cup final but I wonder if we might go with Raya,especially with how important for the rest of the season that could be.
On to Germany.
Nothing better than a slap back down to reality Kev. Perhaps it’ll open a few players eyes as to what “proper” football is about. Top footballers have things a bit too easy these days. I’d imagine most of our lot earn more in a month than Mansfield players earn in a year. Shocking imo but I know it’s where the game has gone.
Clough’s side made it very difficult just as Wrexham did later in the day for Chelsea.
Am I the only one tired of the way the cameras linger on the face of a player, ref or linesman who has just done something or the way they switch to a close up of the coach’s left nostril all while the ball is in play, and that’s not to mention the way the cameras pick out weirdos in the crowd. The number of incident replays is also excessive, when did you last see the restart after a goal has been scored? It’s the same in rugby. Just keep the cameras on the action!
TV producers have a habit of showing the coach or the crowd when something contentious happens on the pitch . The number of times I have said I would like to that again and then the camera switches away .
Did you notice yesterday the ref sent a Mansfield player nearer to our goal for a long throw because the pitch side cameraman wouldn’t or couldn’t get out of the way .
They certainly spend too much time watching Guardiola roll his spit around on his tongue before he spits it out. Disgusting, he’s not even playing.
I bet Joachim Low wishes he’d never been caught on camera as much as he was. 😜
1-0 to the home side in Stoke-on-Trent.
Well … going back to Vale Park’s muddy, bumpy, sticky pitch for yet another cup tie this season I’d have nothing against.
Better still, play them at The Emirates 😜
Sorry to say, but you’re being greedy, Rico 😉.
About Jesus … I feel I have to standup for him against y’all miscreants. Our San Siro game isn’t that far back, so I don’t think it’s a case of him having become hopeless. I just think vintage 60s-70s football isn’t for him … at all.
Now I agree he’s no longer a reliable CF. He’d be deep down in my pecking order, actually, way below Gyö, Kai, and even Merino; but I believe he could be of use on the left, thanks to his technique, his strength, his ability to cut across and hit a curler with his right foot, or again to hold up the ball, link up with our midfielders, and even defend if asked to – his commitment has always been faultless, or so I think anyway.
Marti and Trossard have been very good so far, much better than I, for one, expected them to be at the start of the season, but they’ve been “plateauing” for quite a while now, and Leandro well … see Kev’s report above.
Which is why I’d be curious to see how GJ9 would fare if given a few minutes there, all the more so since Eberechi, whether it was at Bilbao, or of course at Villa (!!), appeared to love it on the LW as much as my dog loves my bathtub …
Ha ha Le Gall.
I’m with you re Jesus playing on the wings, he’s better there than leading our front line. Just. He’s too lightweight for starters and goes over far too easily. Imo of course.
What woofa do you have?
Jesus has never been a true number 9 he can only really play as a withdrawn inside forward he doesn’t have the power against true centre backs. Strange that the suggestion of him moving left whilst I have been curious about how effective Martinelli might be playing inside
Martinelli on the shoulder of the last defender would imo work really well, but our football is usually slow which I don’t think suits any striker.
How Arsenal brought up a century of goals – The Athletic
Madueke’s goal, a left-footed strike into the top corner after receiving the ball from Gabriel Martinelli, was Arsenal’s 100th of the season.
They are the first Premier League side to reach three figures in all competitions in 2025-26 and, as detailed by Opta, became only the third team in Europe’s big five leagues (Italy, France, Spain, Germany and England) to reach the milestone. Bayern Munich (128) and Barcelona (110) are the other two to surpass a century of goals.
Madueke’s strike today means Arsenal have now passed 100 in three seasons running.
To highlight how effective they have been in terms of scoring this season, it took them until April 20 during the 2024-25 campaign to net their 100th goal.
Such is their prolificacy this season, they have achieved the feat in just 46 matches, making this the club’s best scoring campaign — on a goals per game basis — since 1952-53, and are on track to surpass their 113-goal record under Arteta, who has been in charge since December 2019.
Not including own goals, their 101 have been scored by 19 different players, with Viktor Gyokeres leading the way on 15.
Set piece again oh no ,oh no.
None yesterday though. Lol
Gee, that’s a tough one, Rico.
His name is Twist, but I might as well have called him Caligula, since he looks like the final product of multiple dog orgies. We got him at the shelter, he was 6-months-old and they had just taken him off the grip of a guy who … well unfortunately I suspect you have the same kind of b…..d on your side of the pond, so you know.
Five years later he’s the most happy-go-lucky lad you’d imagine, incredibly protective with my daughter … If only he didn’t love muddy surroundings that much, I’d say he’s as perfect a buddy as we expect dogs to be.
Sounds like a lovely boy Le Gall. I couldn’t be without one..
Sadly there are far too many cruel b******s out there.