Arsenal U18s have earned the opportunity to play at Emirates Stadium after overcoming Fulham with a 2-1 win in the fifth round of the FA Youth Cup.
The young Gunners, coached by Adam Birchall, will host either Manchester United or Chelsea in an intriguing quarter-final clash next month.
After overcoming Hertford Town and QPR in hard-fought ties in the previous rounds Arsenal knew they had to produce another spirited display to get the better of Fulham at Motspur Park.
They managed to achieve that objective, with Andre Harriman-Annous and Max Dowman both getting on the scoresheet.
Although Fulham found the net and Dowman missed a penalty, Arsenal managed to prevail, with their hopes of winning this prestigious trophy for the first time since 2009 still intact.
Birchall has made some tactical tweaks of late, with Dowman moving from the right wing to attacking midfield, while Theo Julienne has also been deployed in midfield, with Ife Ibrahim at the base of the trio.
Brayden Clarke, who can also play at centre-back, has moved to right-back and he played a superb pass which unlocked the Fulham defence for Dowman’s goal.
There is a lot of quality in this Arsenal U18 team but their spirit is perhaps even more impressive.
It is also important to note that Arsenal have managed to get to the last eight even though they have been without Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, who are both still eligible to play in this competition this season.
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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird
