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Full time: Sheffield United 1-2 Arsenal
Peep peep! Arsenal are into the semi-finals of the FA Cup after a hard-fought victory at Bramall Lane. Dani Ceballos scored a dramatic injury-time goal at a time when Sheffield United looked the likelier winners, and Mikel Arteta’s side will join Manchester United in the last four.
90+3 min An Arsenal change: Sokratis replaces Pepe.
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Sheffield United have been mugged. Arsenal broke threee on three before Pepe was well tackled by Stevens in the area. Ceballos picked up the loose ball, danced past Stevens and slid the ball under Henderson from a tight angle. That wasn’t great keeping from Henderson, who left a pretty big gap at the near post.
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GOAL! Sheffield United 1-2 Arsenal (Ceballos 90+1)
And now it looks like Arsenal have won it!
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90 min United are pushing for a winner now. After a corner is half cleared, Billy Sharp’s low shot is saved excellently at the near post by Martinez.
Robinson hurled the ball into the box from the left. Kolasinac hoofed it straight at Mustafi, a laughable piece of defending, and the ball rebounded perfectly for McGoldrick to volley in from four yards.
GOAL! Sheffield United 1-1 Arsenal (McGoldrick 87)
Sheffield United equalise from a long throw!
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86 min Pepe leads an Arsenal break and finds Nketiah in the box. He tries to cut back inside Egan, who makes a good tackle.
84 min Sheffield United have had their moments in the second half, but they have really struggled to put Arsenal under sustained pressure.
82 min Henderson’s long kick almost breaks for McBurnie, who is about to shoot when Mustafi pokes the ball away.
80 min Tierney’s driven cross just evades Pepe at the near post.
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78 min A corner to Sheffield United on the left. Norwood curls it towards the far post, where Robinson heads over under pressure.
76 min Billy Sharp replaces Chris Basham for Sheffield United.
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75 min Robinson is booked for a cynical foul on Nketiah.
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72 min United have some good attacking options on the bench, including Lys Mousset, Billy Sharp and Richairo Zivkovic. Now might be the time to introduce them.
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69 min Time for a drinks break.
69 min A cracking long-range shot from Xhaka is well blocked by Robinson.
68 min Robinson’s long throw causes more chaos in the Arsenal area. Eventually Berge’s cross on the turn is kicked away at the near post.
67 min A double change for Arsenal. Dani Ceballos and Eddie Nketiah replace Willock and Lacazette.
66 min As in so many games since lockdown, the second half has been much more enjoyable.
62 min A Sheffield United change: Kieron Freeman replaces George Baldock.
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62 min At the other end, Tierney’s deflected shot ricochets around the area before being lumped clear.
61 min Stevens overhits a through pass to McBurnie, which allows Martinez to come over his line and make an important interception.
60 min: Basham misses a sitter! This is so much better from Sheffield United, and they should be level. Robinson, on the left, curled a glorious deep cross towards Basham, who somehow headed wide from six yards.
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58 min: Sheffield United have another goal disallowed! Norwood’s brilliant free-kick from the right found McGoldrick, whose close-range shot was superbly saved by Martinez. Egan headed the rebound into the newt but the flag had rightly gone up against McGoldrick.
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56 min Dean Henderson’s wind-assisted goal kick almost goes in at the other end! It bounced just inside the penalty area and landed on the roof of the net with Martinez backpedalling frantically.
54 min Holding comes on for David Luiz.
53 min David Luiz is down with an injury. I’m not sure what the problem is but he’s going to be replaced by Rob Holding.
51 min Fleck drags a speculative cross-shot well wide from 20 yards. But it’s been a livelier start to the second half from Sheffield United.
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48 min Robinson’s long, flat throw is headed on by McBurnie and saved comfortably by Martinez.
46 min Peep peep! Sheffield United begin the second half.
Half-time reading
Half time: Sheffield United 0-1 Arsenal
Peep peep! Arsenal deservedly lead a muted Sheffield United thanks to Nicolas Pepe’s penalty. It wasn’t a great half of football, with a lack of quality and intensity from United in particular. See you in 15 minutes for the second half.
45+4 min Tierney is down after a clash of heads with Baldock. I think he’s fine.
45+2 min Pepe’s free-kick from the left hits the unsighted David Luiz on the shoulder and flies well wide.
45+1 min “Hi,” says Berth Sundin. “Any news as to why Özil does not play today?”
He’s fit but didn’t travel with the squad. I assume he’ll leave the club at the end of the season. Don’t be surprised if he moves to Spurs.
45 min Seven minutes of added time. Ambassador...
45 min: Good chance for Pepe! That could have been 2-0. Arsenal moved the ball smoothly from back to front before Willock found Tierney in space on the left. He cut the ball back towards the edge of the area, where Pepe ran round the ball and curled a low shot just wide. He should have done better.
44 min A decent effort from Norwood, whose swept shot from 20 yards is well held by the falling Martinez.
44 min We’re all friends here, so let us speak frankly. This hasn’t been a great half of football.
43 min Maitland-Niles’ fiercely driven cross is pushed up in the air by Henderson. It drops to Saka, who misses his kick, and then Tierney’s 25-yard shot drifts wide.
42 min David Luizwatch: he’s been fine.
40 min In fact the referee didn’t give Sheffield United a free-kick, he just stopped play because of the collision.
39 min Both players are back on their feet, though Willock looks very groggy.
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37 min Willock and McBurnie collide just outside the Arsenal area. Both are flat on their back and look badly winded. The referee has given a free-kick to United, which looks a bit generous.
35 min Lundstram is extremely tough but he is clearly in a lot of pain. Sander Berge has come on to replace him.
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33 min Arsenal are playing some decent stuff now, and Sheffield United are hanging on a little bit.
32 min Lundstram is feeling his shoulder after falling awkwardly. I’m not sure he’ll be able to continue.
31 min Fleck is booked for a foul on Lacazette.
29 min: Good save from Henderson! Pepe almost gets his second. Lacazette teed him up with a simple square pass, 20 yards from goal, and Pepe rifled a low drive that was palmed behind by the diving Henderson.
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29 min Fleck’s long-range shot is blocked on the edge of the area.
26 min Time for a drinks break. The consensus is that Basham did foul Lacazette, even if it was a relatively innocuous tackle. It was a brave decision from the referee Paul Tierney, because nobody really appealed.
GOAL! Sheffield United 0-1 Arsenal (Pepe 25 pen)
Pepe scores! It was a decent penalty, dragged low to the right. Henderson went the right way but couldn’t reach it.
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25 min Pepe is going to take the penalty...
23 min: Penalty to Arsenal! Basham has been penalised for a tackle from behind on Lacazette just inside the area. It looks a bit soft but there was some contact and I don’t think it will be overturned by VAR.
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22 min Willock’s corner goes straight to Fleck at the near post. I’ve no idea what he was trying there.
22 min Pepe gets round the back and crosses to the near post, where the stretching Robinson concedes a corner.
20 min Honestly, nothing.
19 min I don’t know what to say. Nothing is happening.
15 min Arsenal’s build-up play is so ponderous. United look sharper on the counter-attack.
13 min Robinson’s very long throw skims off the head of Mustafi at the near post and just evades the stretching McGoldrick in front of goal. Sheffield United look very dangerous from set pieces.
12 min Arsenal have had 70 per cent of the possession, though they’ve done bugger all with it as yet.
NO GOAL! Sheffield United 0-0 Arsenal
Norwood’s corner was headed back across goal by McBurnie and nodded in from a yard by Lundstram. But replays showed he was definitely offside, and VAR Man intervened accordingly.
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GOAL! Sheffield United 1-0 Arsenal (Lundstram 8)
John Lundstram gices Sheffield United the lead! Hang on, I think he’s offside.
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8 min McGoldrick makes a good run down the left and pulls the ball back to Robinson, whose shot deflects wide off Xhaka.
6 min Egan’s backpass is a bit short, forcing Henderson to run outside his area to hoof clear.
3 min A slow start to the game. Norwood’s free-kick from the right whistles past everyone and out for a goalkick.
1 min Peep peep! Arsenal, in their yellow away strip, kick off from left to right. Sheffield United are in red and white.
“Sheffield United and Arsenal in the FA Cup?” muses Matt Dony. “Has anyone mentioned Seaman’s save from Peschisolido, yet? Very different times for both clubs, back then. Looking back, Arsenal had a truly amazing squad in those days. And Jeremie Aliadiere.”
Seventeen years, man! Phil Jagielka was involved in that game as well.
“Arteta may have a plan, but it looks at times more like the endless twisting of the kaleidoscope until something attractive appears,” says Charles Antaki. “Symmetry, colour, sparkle.. not the obvious current characteristics of Arsenal lineups. Hon. mention though to Bukayo Saka, of course, as a bit of light in the murk.”
He is wonderful. For an 18-year-old, his vision and decision-making are eerily good. Where would you play him? In a very good team I would definitely put him at left-back, but wonder if Arsenal are better off with him on the wing while they develop a team.
Pre-match reading
Team news
Sheffield United’s team is pretty much as expected. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is only on the bench for Arsenal, while Matteo Guendouzi and Mesut Ozil aren’t in the squad.
Sheffield United (3-5-2) Henderson; Basham, Egan, Robinson; Baldock, Lundstram, Norwood, Fleck, Stevens; McGoldrick, McBurnie.
Substitutes: Jagielka, Zivkovic, Mousset, Moore, K Freeman, L Freeman, Sharp, Osborn, Berge.
Arsenal (3-4-3) Martinez; Mustafi, David Luiz, Kolasinac; Maitland-Niles, Xhaka, Willock, Tierney; Pepe, Lacazette, Saka.
Substitutes: Macey, Bellerin, Sokratis, Holding, Smith, Ceballos, Nelson, Nketiah, Aubameyang.
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Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of the FA Cup quarter-final between Sheffield United and Arsenal at Bramall Lane. Two weeks ago, United would have been favourites for this game. But they have been surprisingly poor since lockdown and Arsenal, empowered by a good win at Southampton in the week, will fancy their chances of reaching their first domestic semi-final of the post-Wenger era.
There’s approximately 0.00 per cent chance of United playing as poorly as they did at St James’ Park and Old Trafford, though, so this match is very hard to call. The two teams are separated by only one point in the league as well.
Arsenal have won this competition a record 13 times, including three times between 2014 and 2017. The last of Sheffield United’s four FA Cup wins came 95 years ago. Chris Wilder is already a legend in these parts. Imagine if he wins their first major trophy since 1925.
Kick off 1pm
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