Arsenal will play Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter finals.
The four matches are :
Saturday 12 March
Birmingham City v Bolton Wanderers
Manchester United v Arsenal
Sunday 13 March
Stoke City v West Ham United
Manchester City v Reading
If they’re out of the Champions League by then, the FA Cup quarter final is a bigger game for Arsenal. If both clubs are out , even more so.
But if Man United and Arsenal are still in the Champions League, who gives a toss about the FA Cup?
Thousands of fans voted with their feet last night, not turning up for the replay against Leyton Orient, which Arsenal won 5-0.
An early goal by Chamakh put the skids under Orient, Bendtner followed fine header with a well-aimed right foot shot and a tidy penalty that made it 4-0. Gibbs won the pen when Revell clumsily felled the left back in the box. Then sub Clichy scored in 75.
ARSENAL (4-3-3): Almunia; Eboué, Squillaci, Miquel, Gibbs; Diaby (Clichy, 66), Denilson, Henderson; Bendtner (Wilshere, 66), Rosicky (Nasri, 62), Chamakh. Subs not used Sagna, Djourou, Arshavin, Szczesny (gk).
LEYTON ORIENT (4-1-4-1): Jones; Whing, Forbes, Chorley, Daniels; Carroll; Revell (Mpoku, 79), Crowe (Spring, 65), Dawson, Cox; McGleish (Tehoue, 65). Subs not used Omozusi, Chambers, Butcher (gk), Cestor.
Referee Lee Mason (Lancashire). .
Arsenal and Manchester United both have key players injured and right now the big prizes look like being won by the teams that can keep their match winners out there on the pitch.
Arsenal have lost Robin van Persie for Tuesday night, and also Theo Walcott.
Sunday\’s game at Anfield is a massive fixture for Manchester United, since they are chasing 19 titles to overtake Liverpool\’s 18.
Vidic is suspended and Rio is out with a calf injury, so the centrebacks will be Wes Brown and Chris Smalling. Unfortunately, Liverpool\’s promising right back Martin Kelly is out for a month with a hamstring tear. He’s been very good recently and that\’s a big blow for Kenny. Striker Andy Carroll has been told to lose weight and if he plays on Sunday we can judge that for ourselves.
I\’m looking forward to that game, even though I know it won’t be a thriller like United\’s game at Chelsea two days ago. Kenny Dalglish would never say it, so I will : he\’d love Arsenal to finish above Manchester United.
After Sunday, Liverpool cannot influence the title race. Their job is simply to win as many games as possible.
Chelsea 2 Man Utd 1 was a sensational result for Wenger and the same score at Anfield will put Arsenal in very good shape, as long as they beat Sunderland at the Emirates on Saturday.
This is a big opportunity for big-head Bendtner to make headlines again and a big opportunity for the team to adjust what they are doing to supply the kind of service Bendtner needs. Can they do that?
Loads of ANR readers think Arsenal should sell the Dane. When they send me lists of players who should be unloaded this summer, his name is usually mentioned.
Saturday is a big chance for Bendtner to show he should face Barcelona on Tuesday. He has a football brain but no pace, so Barcelona can play with a high line, as they love to do.
Hoewever, Bendtner can always score a goal when he\’s playing badly and Arsenal will need a goal in the Nou Camp because the second leg will never finish 0-0. He can score headers if the cross gives him a chance. He links quite well with Arshavin but can Nasri now link with Bendtner? We’ll soon see. I reckon he’d far rather play with his mate Chamakh, who will always set him up for a shot.
Wenger says the Premier League is his priority.
Sir Alex has the same priority and that\’s why he lost his head at Chelsea. He flew into a such a rage at Stamford Bridge that he slaughtered Martin Atkinson in language that will see him banned from the touchline. He said, “You want a fair referee and we didn\’t get that.â€
If Ferguson isn’t banned for saying that, then he’s become bigger than football. Some say he’s been bigger than football since 1999.