Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Mustafi, Kosciely, Gibbs, Xhaka, Ramsey, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alexis, Walcott, Giroud
Subs: Martinez, Gabriel, Monreal, Coqeulin, Iwobi, Ozil, Lucas
—
The magic of the cup returned today as underdogs Arsenal pulled off a giant-killing, beating Lincoln City 5-0 at the Emirates this evening.
Arsene Wenger started a very strong team, with Petr Cech in goal, Olivier Giroud up front and Theo Walcott and Alexis Sanchez either side of him.
The game began with the visitors enjoying a bright spell and most of the first few minutes were played in the Arsenal half. Forward Matt Rhead crashed his elbow into the face of Mustafi which required the German to have some treatment.
The Gunners had the first chance of the game though, Aaron Ramsey side-footing wide after being set up just inside the box by Hector Bellerin in the 10th minute.
A few moments later Theo Walcott’s smart volley from a headed clearance saw the Lincoln keeper make a save, pushing the ball onto the post and away to safety.
Granti Xhaka picked up a 24th minute yellow card for a challenge on the fella who pretended to be injured but wasn’t, and there was an early change when Oxlade-Chamberlain had to be replaced by Mesut Ozil in the 27th minute because of a hamstring issue.
There was danger at our end when Nathan Arnold went on an excellent run into the Arsenal box, cut inside Koscielny and forced Cech into a good save from close range.
Rhead required some treatment after catching a Koscielny elbow in the face – if you dish it out and all that – before Walcott had another go from an Alexis cross, but his left-footed effort was easy for the keeper.
The Arsenal captain was next into Anthony Taylor’s book, picking up a yellow card when a Lincoln player literally ran into him in the centre-circle and then fell over.
Ramsey had another effort, trying to dink the ball into the far corner when a poor clearance fell to him, but the ball flew wide. However, in the 6 minutes of first half injury time, Arsenal took the lead.
The ball bounced around the Lincoln area after a corner, Giroud headed it down, Gibbs laid it into the path of Walcott whose shot deflected off a defender and into the far corner. 1-0.
There was another chance for Ramsey who blasted over from a Walcott pass, but the goal in injury time was enough to see Arsenal into the break with the lead.
There were no changes from either manager at half-time, and Arsenal had the first effort via Ozil which deflected wide.
Giroud then tested the keeper with a stinging shot which the keeper saved well, but when Walcott put the rebound back across goal, Kieran Gibbs could only head over from close range.
The non-league side were under some significant pressure with most of the game being played in their final third, and that pressure came to bear with a second goal.
Ozil played the ball in from the left, Sanchez and Bellerin combined and the full-back pulled the ball back for Giroud who finished with his right foot to double the lead. 2-0.
Bellerin nutmegged a defender then side-footed a shot just wide before the lead was extended further, a Lincoln defender poking the ball into his own net after a low Gibbs cross. 3-0.
That prompted Arsene Wenger into his second change, putting on Francis Coquelin for Xhaka in the 61st minute, followed not long after when Lucas Perez replaced Olivier Giroud.
Ozil headed over on the run from an Alexis cross as Arsenal looked to extend the lead even further, and the two combined again to add the fourth. Alexis picked the ball up from Ozil, drove infield, a Lincoln defender tackled fresh air, he continued and curled the ball into the bottom corner from just outside the box. 4-0.
The tails were up and we got the fifth just minutes later. Arsenal pressured Lincoln on the edge of their box, Alexis showed some trickery in the box, crossed it, and it came to the back post where the Welshman was there to step inside the keeper and finish from basically on the line. 5-0.
Cech did have to make a save from Power in the 80th minute, Lucas was denied a penalty by Anthony Taylor and when some clogger launched himself off the ground into Ozil’s legs even Taylor couldn’t not give a free kick. From the set-piece Alexis smashed the bar.
Walcott shot wide from a corner, Lucas saw an effort fly not far wide of the far post, and in the end Arsenal were well deserved winners. The win made BT Sport and Anthony Taylor and Piers Morgan sad
ps – We had to listen to Chris Sutton for 90 minutes. This man is a pillock. Just wanted to share that.
Wenger forever.
I’m glad you appreciate the subtleties of the situation.
Chris Sutton has got to be the new Michael Owen except that Owen was a decent footballer.
Sutton is a monotone,boring,controversial nobody.
After next weeks defeat to West Brom, it will be Wenger out again
And if we beat West Brom maybe all the Wenger Out fuckwits will stick their fingers up their arses to stop the outpouring of their shit.
Fuck them. They can support West Brom while we will make it to the TOP FOUR again this season. 1 loss and they backstab the boss.
Welcome to big school.
Better.
10/10 for the last sentence!
The best part about the game is listening how salty the commentator on BT sport was.
That was good but man it was annoying to listen to those 2 pundits on BT sucking Lincoln’s cocks for 90 minutes. Hacking us down all game and they say ‘Lincoln just wanted it more’ then saying we are pathetic for actually going down when kicked or giving it back. Cunts. I hate the double standard. Also are you allowed to have 2 managers on the sideline like they did? I’ve never seen that before.
Nothing wrong with sucking cock
tru
who said there was?
If you’re a woman
What has Pires got to do to start a game for the club?
That’s the only gripe I had about the game. Otherwise great performance from everyone, especially Walcott and in the 2nd half, Alexis.
Bring back Pires
I’m sure he meant Piers…
Bring in Piers
Fuck Piers
I was wondering who that was talking so much shit
Why am I being moderated blogs? Been like that for months.
Job done
Great game by the team after a miserable week. Hopefully we can kick on and win the cup and have a strong finish to the season.
What are the betting odds that an article gets written about Arsenal not being good sports and putting 5 past a non-league side?
damned if you do and damned if you don’t, right now.
There was a guy posted on bbc live feed saying that we were classless in scoring so many goals against them, I kid you not … what a twat !
Surely would have said we were ‘soft’ and ‘couldn’t pu the sword to them’ if we’d only won 2-0.
But the romance of the underdog I’m sure.
The best part was that dude Rhead’s ridiculous combover haircut.
Chris Sutton is the same as Adrian Durham. A cunt imo.
Cuntiest pundit on TV. Makes Owen look like a thoughtful and fair-minded guy. Went over the top saying how Perez dived and deserved a yellow for it, even though it was obvious there was contact. Even if you don’t think it was a pen or even think he was looking for it, to not even mention the fact that there was clear contact is disgustingly biased. Also had several digs at Arsene Wenger, snidely suggesting AW was definitely going and that all the fans were against him (for the record, I think he should probably retire), which is just completely… Read more »
Anyone else think BT Sport are basically the sun newspaper of tv football coverage? Deliberately assemble a load of the biggest cunts possible to present/commentate on their channel so that they gain as many mentions as possible across social media. £37 a month?! Should be paying us twice that amount just to put up with their turd of a channel.
And they have the worst customer service in the world
Apart from Ian Wright, you are right. I watch on someone elses login deets, not paying that shower of shit cunts a dime.
it was so ironic to hear Ian Wright say that Giroud should learn form Lincoln’s Rhead, the same Wright that asked David Dein for a transfer cos Bruce Rioch told him to learn from John McGinley – it never ceases to amaze how little self awareness these ex players have.
You are right, that was the most bollocks comment I’ve heard from Wrighty. Giroud has made his name from bullying defenders amongst other things. He is a physical and a technical player which is rare in the football world. He has scored the most headers domestically than most so it was an uneducated comment which has no basis in reality. Just because he doesn’t do that in 1 game, you can’t type cast him as an inferior player.
Wait, you mean Ian Wright of 20 fucking years ago was saying and thinking differently than Ian Wright today?!?! What a fraud, where does he get the nerve to think differently about things after time and experience?
I didn’t go, watched it on the telly and that Chris Sutton is a complete and utter cunt.
Not quite the same, I don’t think. The Sun are outright malicious (especially with Neil Ashton, the most loathsome journo in the business, now propping them up). BT Sport are just thick.
You mean you weren’t impressed by how often Jake Humphries managed to reminded everyone (like we needed reminding) about Tuesday’s result? He must have mentioned it three or four times in the opening 15 minutes alone. That’s some special broadcasting talent…special.
Sky commentary is much the same now. Essentially they’re all shite. It really spoils the experience listening to their utterly bias rubbish – the recent Chelski assault on Hector springs to mind. It’s the thing that I hate most about football.
Gutted for ox, just as he’s showing some consistency and looking like nailing down a first team place.
Hopefully it won’t be a serious one. At least we got him off the pitch quickly.
So glad they did. We’re far too threadbare in the middle to risk anything worse happening to him right now.
I hope it’s a quick recover.
Good win in spite of the competition. Hopefully this would inject some confidence into our team.
let us never hear the sounbite again that Arsenal are pricing the young fans out of going to games, here was a cat c game, a cup qf, with AFC overwhelming favorites, and tens of thousands of tickets available and those starved of the chance to go to the game couldn’t be arsed.
I tried for the last ten days to get a ticket on the exchange and there wasn’t anything at all, anywhere in the stadium. It was annoying to see empty seats because people didn’t put them on the exchange, either trying to prove a point or too lazy, otherwise I would have been there. There weren’t tens of thousands of tickets available or lots of us would have taken them.
This game was on the site as Sold Out, so don’t let’s hear the soundbite about people not buying tickets despite being so cheap,. The empty seats are season ticket holders who’ve paid their money and taken the choice not to go to. Ticket exchange is a good idea but too much rigmarole for most with the time limits and often left unsold because of the Club restrictions, with a 10% charge – hardly worth it for a £25 game. Most will have decided afterTuesday not to go and Exchange not available. A game against a National League side at… Read more »
I’m fed up with my comments being left for moderation, off somewhere else now!
Bayern can fuck off with their pricing whinging. Their banner moaned about £63 a ticket. What did they charge us? £58.
Bloody 5:30 kick off. Poxy t.v. destroys football. Kick offs at stupid times, all sorts of odd days.
In fact it’s their fault the prices are as high as they are.
Don’t let Eduardo hear you say that! Got the tight hump last time I suggested that.
i am tired of all the fans who behave like demigods here just because they have been supporting arsenal for like 15 years or so and that all other opinions are rat’s ass compared to their’s…..i get that le prof took us to the new heights and that we are top club now under him but us the new generation fans are tired of what we have been watching post 2005 season….there’s been no tactics against big team and when u see a team like sp*ds liverpool and even everton doing well against top teams compared too us then it… Read more »
Ok son. But what’s all that got to do with the match we just watched?
Oh, and full stops are not a bad idea.
How in the name of Dennis can fans hold a club back? I mean, seriously? So if we’re not acting like moronic spoilt brats, and actually want Arsenal to win every game, we are holding the club back. Dude, you are getting it wrong, the person you want to be directing your anger Toward is a certain Stanley Kroenke. It’s his name above the door, if you aren’t happy with how the club is run, take it up with him, because what you numpties are doing is hurting the clubs results in the here and now, and feeding an already… Read more »
Wow, you sure is a “Wenger Out”-veteran. You must be very proud…
Well don’t know about proud but he must be frustrated as hell since he has spent so long in that brigade. Unfortunately he doesn’t have ‘Lucid Rage’
I think I might have it on VHS, I could send it over.
Glad you could hold back your tears for long enough after the win to the type out that master-class in bullshit. It’s almost like a 6th goal today (Wenger out – you in!). Thank you.
I love fairy tales like the next person, but Arsenal is a wounded lion right now and given the torrid 2 weeks we have had, that is exactly the kind of response expected from this squad. 5-0……… No disrespect intended for Lincoln’s achievement.
Being nil nil at 45 minutes??
And? I thought football matches were decided over 90 minutes.
well many of us were very content about how we played for first 45 mins against bayern munich.so even this 1st half should count xD
I was hoping we could hammer a non league team within the first 45 minutes, rather than struggle and even pick up two yellow cards?
Just me then, sorry!
Yeah, those two yellow cards–inexcusable from the team! #Wengerout!
It’s not about Wenger out or in, it’s about how we played.
You must be the grumpy Paul, rather than the one that loves Gibbs.
Sadly I am original Paul that loves Gibbs but just was so disappointed about our display today.
I only count the final score to be fair…….. just seems like you’re wanting a bit of negativity in your life.
…and winning 5-0 at the end of the match?..whats to be ashamed of in that?…..same team that knocked Burnley, a co-premier league team out, a team, which I might add took points off a few ‘top’ clubs in the league this year, and almost took points off us as well. What’s shameful in that?
It has always been like that for the ox, so unlucky
Job done. Now lets get on a fucking run of consistent wins. Oh, and fuck the fucking media pricks.
Fucking fuckers
Our passing was atrocious once again. We played through Alexis who kept swivelling and giving the ball away. Ramsey joined in the swiveling with added Hollywood misses.
Our deflected goal killed them and they were a shadow of their first half team after the break.
We are not very good imo.
Why do this to yourself?
I am just commenting and worrying about our footballing ability at the moment mate.
As for “Why do this..” comment…fuck off. X
Wow! No moderation! Sorry comments policy, I am pissed off right now.
COYG!
Beautiful……
#Classy
Relax, mate, we won the game. Our possession was 77% and our passing was 87.7%, we forced them into 36 clearances, and we scored 5 goals. We acted with respect and class before and after the game, too, and made sure the Lincoln City team, manager, and fans were treated with the utmost hospitality. This is something to enjoy, not something on which to sh*t.
It was against a non league team! I am clearly pissing against the wind here.
You all know I fucking love Arsenal and I am always glass half full…but that first 45 mins???
Paul, I’d agree with you if it wasn’t a Q/Finals game against a team that’s beaten reasonable opposition to get there. As it is, it’s a 90 minute game though…
Either Paul is being sarcastic or he didn´t watch the game. Actually Alexis was positive for the first time for weeks – no negative antics today.
With all the bullshit too many bullshitters let out about the club, players and the manager, it was obvious we didn´t want to concede in the first half.
I have never missed watching the game in the last many many years…I was watching Alexis getting done by non league players.
After this display who would bet their house on us even getting to the final?
Of course no one would, especially the way the team has been playing recently. But this is precisely why playing non-leaguers at home in the QF of the FA Cup is a lose-lose situation for the team. Either we actually lose, or win but it’s very tight, in which case the manager and the team are hammered by everyone, or we win comfortably like today, in which case someone still complains that against a non-league side it really should have been 20-0. I don’t think we played great today, but then that really didn’t matter: we played well enough to… Read more »
Thanks for taking the time to respond but I am devastated about how they were better than us in the majority of the first half.
You heard it here first, we are fucked this season and that’s annoying because many plastic fans want that. I don’t but I think it’s coming…
You must have been listening to Chris Sutton too closely! No way they were better than us in the first half. They worked hard, were organized, etc, etc, but other than that one run from their quick fella, they didn’t trouble us at all. We weren’t great, but we’ve played thousands of times over the years against teams who play like they were playing against us, and we knew if we were patient, that the goals would come. We were patient. The goals came. I wish we had played better too, but basically this performance and result tells us next… Read more »
Maybe I am just in a bad mood…
Maybe you’re just not very good at supporting Arsenal
Paul, if it gives you some solace, I totally agree with you. I thought we were pretty dreadful throughout the first half and I don’t understand why, when we are the superior team as some have stated, it took us a whole half before we tried to asset ourselves on the game. The second half was great and scoring a boat load of goals was great but isn’t that what we should expect when we play a team the calibre of Lincoln? People talk about seeing things through tinted glasses and being overly negative and I agree that that happens.… Read more »
Chris Sutton what a bellend
Think we have have found our level. I reckon we could mount a strong title challenge in the national league
Prob still finish fucking fourth
Thumbs down to that cunt of a commentator who suggested that Lucas should get a yellow card for falling after being fouled and calling it a dive!
Yep. A bit like the red card and penalty mid-week – why are the commentators/pundits not calling these things out correctly?
Because they are dishonest & afraid not to parrot the narrative in England which is that the underdog is somehow more authentic & virtuous. There also exists an anti Arsenal bias which makes it sweeter when we win.
It suits the negative narrative the media have against Arsenal.
Chris ‘I won’t play for England B don’t you know who I am’ Sutton is a clueless, classless cunt, and it must be catching because even Wrighty is talking out of his anus. Savage, Shearer, Murphy, Owen, McManaman and Ferdinand have the combined I.Q of a particularly stupid tomato. Cunts.
Come on the Gunners!!! Good stuff, job done, love when we do the business. No story for the media tomorrow, good weekend ahead and I can enjoy my pints tonight???
They’ll find a story.
Ox off = Arsenal in Injury crisis…
Nice to see the team working well together again, and there appeared to be a lot of respect from our manager and players to theirs after the final whistle, deepening the impact of what Lincoln has achieved, which is another reason I just love our club. The broadcast I watched was dominated by the Lincoln City Fan Orchestra for much of it, and to see them singing and clapping in unison at the final whistle despite the scoreline is a good reminder of how magical this cup can be. Ramsey just about walked a goal in today — how very… Read more »
I think he’s dialed in his range.
Nice to finally win again. But the joy of an FA Cup semifinal is unfortunately spoiled by media sharks sniffing blood. It’s getting pretty tiresome, and I wish that the true Arsenal-supporters wouldn’t encourage them.
Let’s all get behind the team untill the end of the season. And then we can discuss our obvious problems.
Beautiful goal Alexis.
I hope you score more goals in the PL and finish as the top scorer.
Is no one going to mention the revenge Ozil took for the push on him? Absolutely loved it. Excellent performance and is it just me who wanted us to keep scoring even at 5-0? Also in the bbc live match page they just posted a tweet of a person who called Arsenal’classless’ because they kept on trying to score, are these people actually this dumb or do they just act like it
Yeah that was CLASS by Ozil who had a decent game. And crazy talk to call us classless for wanting to score more. What kind of parallel universe are they living in?
I had to rewind Ozil getting physical — couldn’t believe my eyes!
Yep, me too……and thumbs up for Anthony Taylor for remembering the initial incidence and diplomatically looking the other way, instead of blowing for a foul, which left chris sutton, the gimp, upset and baying for Ozil’s blood, for an identical act he was calling ‘physicality of football’ a few minutes ago…the twat!
Yeah it was a good game but it’s Lincoln City not Real Madrid. We should be winning by this score line at least. Still hope Wenger,Sanchez and Ozil don’t stay.
You want to beat Madrid, and also our two best players to leave? What’s next – hiring Big Sam or Harry R. As our next manager?
Pulis! And bring in some more graft. Ozil and Alexis have never won anything, bar a few foreign things.
Phil, seriously, WTF are you on about?! You might want Wenger to leave, fair enough, but it doesn’t have to be an exodus. This is Arsenal football club, not rats leaving a sinking ship.
A win’s a win’s a win.
I can direct my impotent rage elsewhere now.
Simpsons out!
Chris Sutton’s dad was the PE teacher at my school lol his son played for some crap team called Blackburn and now thinks he knows what it takes to be a pundit!!! Whatever!!!
I’m Arsenal until I die, bonkers about them. But I was born and raised in Lincolnshire, and I used to go to Sincil Bank as a kid, always going to have a soft spot for them. For me this was a once in a lifetime match. Once in several lifetimes actually. Exactly what Arsenal needed after recent results, and a trip to Wembley can only be good. But can we just take a moment to appreciate the magnitude of what Lincoln City have achieved. It’s been incredible for the whole county, not just the city. The Imps are a properly… Read more »
A…fucking…men brother. Beautifully put.
The truth is so simple sometimes … but nonetheless beautiful.
You’re not allowing for the entitlement many of our newer ‘fans’ have…
I couldn’t help frowning throughout today’s game. Wenger is an honorable man but old, past it, and no longer in control. The team is split and it’s not pretty. – Alexis and Perez have decided to leave. It’s now obvious that Sanchez is holding back. Right after scoring, Alexis ran up to Perez and whispered to him the equivalent of “I’ll set you up for the next one (to help you get outta here)”. Notice how little between-play interaction there was between the team and Sanchez. – Ozil’s not playing his best and seems both insecure and undecided. He hasn’t… Read more »
Um, newsflash: you have no idea what goes on in the dressing room or in the minds of our players, or certainly no more than the rest of us (which amounts to almost none). Stop trying to pretend that you do.
I posted my opinion; I may be wrong. I hope I’m wrong. But that’s how I read the game.
That’s not “reading the game”. That’s playing fantasy pop-psychologist and then reading your fantasy conjectures about the psychological states of our players into the action on the pitch.
We won the game and played well in the process, we acted with class and respect in our pre- and post-game interactions with Lincoln City and their fans, and our players appeared actually to enjoy themselves at times out there. Why deny yourself enjoyment of that? Just turn that frown upside down. 🙂
What a load of bollocks, you sound like a twin of the commentator that you describe so eloquently. I get upset with Arsene and some of his team selections and the way we play sometimes, but I can also appreciate effort from our players, and enjoy a good win when it comes along. Enjoy the football for Gods sake, stop looking at absolutely everything through miserable agenda-tinted glasses! I would love another FA cup, please, and I thought all the team played well today, including Mesut and Alexis, who were both excellent.
The only logical conclusion from the last two weeks of football; Arsenal are the Lincoln City of the champions league !
Besides of the positive and negative about Sanchez, I want Alexis to stay at Arsenal.
Just remember…media pundits have never managed a big club let alone worked in transfer market Bar Gary Neville who tried but wasn’t successful but at least put his money where his mouth was. Often times, those employed by media have had mediocre careers with mediocre clubs. The word “bitter” comes to mind If we beat Lincoln by 5 or more they will label us classless If we beat them by one or two we would be not convincing, a team of spoilt brats. They’re agenda is to prey in the mind of the fans at the club who van only… Read more »
So Chelsea will likely win the title. City have to meet and overcome some serious opponents in the CL. FA cup is up for contention for a number of the teams around us and is no given. We still have plenty of work to do. BUT if we win it and finish higher than say Spurs, I can’t say aside from Chelsea winning the title (and say City do not do the business against Barca or Bayern or Madrid), then we would not have done too badly. I’m not sure why people have to moan before the season is even… Read more »