(0) 1 - 2 (2) ArsenalRiverside Stadium. Saturday 24th January 1998FA Cup 4th roundPreview
(0) 1 - 2 (2) ArsenalRiverside Stadium. Saturday 24th January 1998FA Cup 4th round
Scorers:
Merson 67 Overmars 1, Parlour 19
Arsenal:
Manninger
Dixon (Grimandi) Bould Adams Winterburn
Parlour Petit Vieira Overmars
Bergkamp Anelka
A cracking match which should have seen Arsenal more than 2-0
up after 60 minutes. Overmars scored after just over a minute.
Bergkamp put him through with one of many delightful passes,
and although the ball bobbled a bit under him Overmars managed to
get his foot clean through the ball to fire it past the keeper
into the bottom far corner, from just outside the area.
The second saw Parlour put through in a similar position. This time it was a quick break: Adams to Anelka just inside their half, he took it with back to goal and spotted Parlour's run on the far side of the pitch. Ray took it well and blasted home, again from just outside the area on our right. We could have had a few more, with Overmars and Anelka both just off target. But a decidedly dodgy spell after the hour saw Boro come right into it and for 15 minutes after that we were under the cosh. Merson brought a goal back when Manninger came too early to meet him outside the area. Merse took it round him and slotted the ball home through a couple of Arsenal defenders.The next 3 minutes saw a penalty claim turned down when Winterburn brought Mustoe down, and diallowed goal when Merson brilliantly found Townsend in the box. It was called up for offside which replays showed to be slightly harsh since Townsend himself was well onside and all 3 offside players were only just off, and trying to get back. Boro had a few more good chances, with Beck shooting too close to Manninger after a great one-two with Merson and Mustoe heading over the bar having got to a Moreno cross in front of Dixon. But at the end of the match Arsenal were in the ascendancy again and are deservedly through to the 5th round for the first time since we won the cup in 93. Anelka had a decent match, and in a way it was nicer to see him make that goal for Parlour with awareness combining with his undoubted skill than it would have been to see him score. Bergkamp too was very influential and with these 2 on form maybe the temporary absence of Wright will be survived. A permanent absence of Wright, however, would still need something else in our armoury to compensate. Nice to see Merson have such a good game, especially in the second half. I hope for his sake that Boro come up, because he's contracted to them for 4 more years and this man should not be playing Nationwide League football. As he said after the match, the mistakes they made might have been got away with in their League but not against the likes of Overmars and Bergkamp. Having said that, they did put out a young side, reflecting their desire not to be distracted from the league. It'll be interesting to see who they field in the Coke Cup semi against Liverpool on Tuesday.
Other notable results: Spurs hanging onto a home draw against
Barnsley.
Other reports
The draw for the fifth round is now on the FA Cup page. Rupe.
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