Arsenal and Manchester United will fight for a restorative victory in the stand-out tie of an FA Cup third round packed with potential giant-killings, a family divided and a Manchester derby with a difference.
Citizen Digital looks at the key talking points from an extended weekend of action, which kicks off with Everton’s Ashley Young facing his son on Thursday:
New balls for Arteta
In a showdown between the FA Cup’s two most successful sides, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will be keeping a close eye on the ball when Manchester United visit the Emirates Stadium.
Arteta came up with an unusual excuse for Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat against Newcastle in the League Cup semi-final first leg on Tuesday, claiming the ball was responsible for his team’s wayward finishing.
The League Cup uses a different ball to the Premier League and Arteta moaned: “We kicked a lot of balls over the bar. It’s tricky. This ball flies a lot.”
With the FA Cup also having its own ball, the trajectory of Arsenal’s shooting will be watched with interest in a game neither side can afford to lose.
The only silverware of Arteta’s Arsenal reign came when he led them to a record 14th FA Cup triumph in 2020.
Trailing six points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand, the Gunners may need to focus on cup success to end their trophy drought.
Holders United, who have lost their last four meetings with Arsenal, earned their 13th FA Cup success last season.
But Ruben Amorim’s team are on a five-game winless run in all competitions, including four defeats, with last weekend’s draw at Liverpool offering rare encouragement for their beleaguered manager.
‘Accrington Stanley, who are they?’
When Liverpool were pitted against Accrington Stanley in the third round draw, fans of a certain age would have been forgiven for shouting “who are they?”
A memorable British television advert for milk in the 1980s showed two boys talking about football while drinking the product in question.
Dressed in a Liverpool kit, one of the young actors tells his friend: “It’s what Ian Rush drinks. He said if I don’t drink lots of milk then when I grow up, I’ll only be good enough to play for Accrington Stanley.”
To which the other boy replied: “Accrington Stanley, who are they?” before his co-star exclaimed “exactly!” in a thick Liverpudlian tone.
Now Accrington, languishing in 19th place in the fourth tier, have a chance to turn the joke on its head by causing one of the FA Cup’s greatest upsets against the Premier League leaders at Anfield on Saturday.
A family affair
Former England defender Ashley Young will have to put aside his role as a proud parent during Everton’s tie against Peterborough on Thursday.
Young’s 18-year-old son Tyler plays for third tier Peterborough, raising the prospect of a familial meeting at Goodison Park.
“The dream could come true,” the 39-year-old Everton right-back said after the draw was made.
Tyler has only featured once for Peterborough, but their manager Darren Ferguson said Ashley tried to convince him to pit the pair against each other.
“Ash put a bit of pressure on me. I’ll have to find a way to get Tyler involved,” said Ferguson, whose father Alex won the FA Cup five times as Manchester United manager.
“That’s the kind of story the FA Cup brings out, and it would be another good one,” the Peterborough boss added.
Manchester derby with a twist
Just weeks after losing the Manchester derby to bitter rivals United, Pep Guardiola’s City will face another neighbour intent on inflicting even greater humiliation.
The 2-1 defeat by struggling United on December 15 was a painful blow in a turbulent season for City.
But being knocked out of the FA Cup by Salford City, the fourth tier minnows from just five miles across Manchester would be a new low for Guardiola’s men.
Salford’s first appearance in the third round is the latest fairytale moment for a club transformed since former United stars Gary and Phil Neville, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Nicky Butt bought it in 2014.
Now third in League Two, Salford will show no fear against the Premier League champions on Saturday, with boss Karl Robinson saying: “We are true to who we are, who our owners are and what we want to be”.
