Matt Turner and Zack Steffen had very different outcomes in their FA Cup Third Round fixtures, while Brenden Aaronson and Leeds face a do-over against Cardiff after the team delivered Jesse Marsch a last-minute draw.
Oxford United 0 – 3 Arsenal
Matt Turner picked up a rare start for Arsenal when the Gunners traveled to Oxford to take on the League One in the FA Cup, earning a shut-out in the process.
The American had a relatively quiet night between the sticks against their stubborn hosts, who dominated the first half but in the end only registered one shot on goal. Turner ended the night with three saves.
Arsenal struggled until coach Mikel Arteta made a couple of second half substitutions, and that was the boost that they needed.
Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Elneny broke the deadlock in the 63rd minute with a header that came from Fabio Vieira’s free kick.
Seven minutes later, Eddie Nketiah scored the first of his eventual brace; the team broke forward and Vieira picked up his second assist when he slipped the ball past the defender for the Englishman to run onto and easily beat Irish keeper Edward McGinty.
Six minutes later the Irishman was picking the ball out of his net again as Nketiah struck again. The three goals came in a 13-minute timespan for the Gunners.
Arsenal next face North London rivals Tottenham on Sunday in the Premier League. Next up in the Cup for the Gunners will be a tough tie up in Manchester in late-January, when they take on City.
Watch the highlights here:
Cardiff City 2 – 2 Leeds United
Jesse Marsch started Brenden Aaronson and rested Tyler Adams for Leeds’ FA Cup tie against Cardiff City, a draw that will force the teams to take the field again for a dreaded replay.
Cardiff proved difficult to handle in the first half, with Jaden Philogene-Bidance scoring in the 24th minute, thanks to terrible goalkeeping and calamitous defending for Leeds. Oluwaseji Ojo doubled the advantage in the 31st minute after a stellar run, great first touch, and solid finish.
It took the visitors until the 65th minute to find an answer, a goal coming from Rodrigo.
The home side made a costly error when Joel Bagan was given his marching orders in the 80th minute, allowing Leeds an opening with ten minutes to play against ten men.
Rodrigo missed the ensuing penalty kick, but Sonny Perkins would go on to score in the 93rd minute to force the replay.
Up next for Aaronson and company take on Aston Villa on Friday.
Watch the highlights here:
Middlesbrough 1 – 5 Brighton
Zack Steffen and company got throttled by Brighton and Hove Albion, with Matthew Hoppe an unused substitute for the home team.
Early on, the game seemed to be in balance; Pascal Gross scored in the eighth minute to put Brighton ahead, but Chuba Akpom equalized just five minutes later for the hosts.
However, Adam Lallana would score in the 29th minute, taking the Premier League team into half time with the advantage, which would only grow thanks to a deluge after the break.
Alexis Mac Allister was a half time substitute and went on to score in the 58th and the 80th minutes. The fifth and final goal for the visitors would come in the 88th minute through Deniz Undav.
Watch the highlights here:
Notes:
Antonee Robinson and Tim Ream were rested, with Robinson playing the last 14 minutes for Fulham in their 2-0 win over Hull City in the FA Cup. Vaughan Covil did not make the bench for Hull.
Christian Pulisic is out injured for Chelsea who were dumped out of the FA Cup by Manchester City, by a 4-0 scoreline.
Josh Sargent was rested for Norwich, but Jonathan Tomkinson was on the bench for Norwich in their 1-0 home loss to Blackburn in the FA Cup.
Daryl Dike was a second half substitute in West Brom’s come from behind draw against Non-League Chesterfield FC.
Chris Richards was an unused substitute for Crystal Palace in their 2-1 loss to Southampton in the FA Cup.
Matthew Olosunde did not make the bench for Preston North End, and Duane Holmes was a second half substitute as Huddersfield won 3-1.
Alex Mighten was an unused substitute in Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 win over Newcastle United in their shock FA Cup win.
