15 GAMES TO GO, LET'S MAKE HISTORY
When I think of the FA Cup, I think about my Arsenal family back home. We have had so many glorious moments together because of this competition. Winning cups. Losing them. Being blackout drunk after over exposure to snakebite. Wearing a fur jacket to Cardiff. Being in the same hotel as Lineker and Ian Wright in Cardiff. Getting drunk in the Green Man. Hating on Michael Owen. Loving Freddie and his red hair. Not going home for two days after big wins. Waking up in an attic in the house of a random and being locked in. Lost in Canary Wharf. Aaron Ramsey. Mikel Arteta. Per Mertesacker. Sanchez. Giroud. Dad down Wembley way. Dad getting his hair stroked by a scary Welsh women who did not get consent. NIK ANELKA.
So many good memories come from football and you have to hug them. That’s why once you get into a quarter final of the FA Cup, you have to get extremely serious, and maybe a little bit unstable about the importance of the moment, because there’s a party on the line that you’ll never forget, because you’ll be there with your people, having an incredible time. My Arsenal family are having a terrible moment right now and I want them to know they’re in my thoughts. I love you guys more than you’ll ever know, sending all the thoughts and prayers the world can muster for you, and hoping for a massive win so we can be together at a big party.
The injury news is a mixed bag from Mikel Arteta.
Madueke is doing better than expected and he will travel…
Ebs is not going to make this game…
Martin Odegaard and Jurrien Timber should be in the squad…
Hincapie is out with a hamstring issue…
Arteta is banging the table about what the afternoon means.
‘We are in a position now that we are going to make the strongest line-ups and decisions that we possibly can to win every competition. We are two or three games away in the FA Cup and we know how important that competition is for us.’
An FA Cup win would be magical, only in the context of a big trophy win, but there’s no reason we can’t take them all at this point.
7 Premier League games.
3 FA Cup games.
5 Champions League games.
15 games are going to decide the feelings of the summer. They could redefine the history of the club, good or bad. It is the most exciting test of our squad under Mikel Arteta. It’s the most competitive we’ve been since we went a season unbeaten.
We’re also blessed by how the return to action has been shaped.
Southampton, should, objectively, be a nice way to ease into the 15-game run. They are well coached, but Arsenal are also well coached, and way too overpowered.
Sporting Lisbon away will be a test, but again, it’s better than playing Paris away.
Arsenal will be in a groove by the time we return to The Emirates to right the wrongs of last season’s Bournemouth loss.
All seems good on paper, but paper is no match for a cold bucket of cupset misery… Arsenal have to go into this Southampton game and treat them like Real Madrid. A complacent start will f*ck the whole week up and I am not prepared to accept that from the comfort of my couch.
I’ve really started to pivot a little on how I want to see this line-up. My non-negotiables are I don’t really expect to see Zubimendi or Declan Rice. Those two have been running on fumes and we really should have enough in midfield with Norgaard, Odegaard, and maybe Bukayo Saka.
Right side of midfield, I’m hoping it’s Madueke. Left side, I’m expecting to see Trossard, because Martinelli will be red hot for Sporting Lisbon.
Up front, this is a Gyokeres game. He’s going to get space, he’s a flattrack bully, and he’s on fire with 4 goals from his last 4 shots. Let him loose on a Championship defence that has conceded 48 so far this season.
Myles at left back, Mosquera and Gabriel central, with Benny B or Marli at right back.
That is how you win that game. The only acceptable difference in that starting 11 is if Max Dowman is given a run out on the right.
The only wrinkle in this game is that the game is at their gaff, they’ll have fresher players, and Arsenal have wet the bed there a few times with a very good squad.
But… this team is different. This moment is more profound than any in our history. This is the chance to show that the pain was a learning curve and we’re around it, speeding towards a history-making finish.
I am VERY excited. You should get on all the content we’ve been putting out this week, including a Dugout special with the excellent Alex Moneypenny. One of my favourite content creators.