Mikel Arteta breaks unwanted 30-year record in ‘stale’ Arsenal defeat to Man United

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Arsenal’s trophy ambitions took a massive hit against Manchester United after they were knocked out on penalties in FA Cup.

Having suffered to defeat to Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup just days earlier, the importance of the Red Devils tie could not be underestimated.

The Gunners however would suffer cup defeat yet again, with several Arsenal stars disappointing against Man United – leaving Mikel Arteta’s trophy hopes hanging in the balance.

Arteta would have undoubtedly seen the FA Cup as the ideal opportunity to win some silverware having previously lifted the trophy back in 2020.

With that being said though, Arsenal’s record in the competition has been very poor of late – something that was again on show at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal and Mikel Arteta’s worrying FA Cup record

Arsenal defied the odds when they were crowned FA Cup champions in 2020, overcoming both Man City and Chelsea to lift the coveted trophy.

Since that triumph though, Arsenal have struggled in football’s oldest competition, losing five of their last six FA Cup ties.

Having exited at the same stage last year, the Gunners have now been eliminated from the competition in the third round in back-to-back campaigns for the first time since 1995/1996 (v Millwall and Sheffield United).

This is undoubtedly a record Arteta and Arsenal will want to rectify, they however will have to wait another season to do so.

Theo Walcott labels FA Cup defeat as ‘stale’

Arsenal fans were confident drawing Man United in FA Cup given Ruben Amorim’s start to life as Old Trafford boss.

So if you had told supporters that Man United would play the majority of the game with ten men, they would have undoubtedly expected their side to reach the fourth round.

That of course would not turn out to be the case, with Arsenal failing to find the cutting edge needed to win the game – something Theo Walcott reflected on in BBC’s post-match coverage.

“Arsenal have gone from being a free-flowing forward line, exciting the crowd to going a bit stale at the Emirates.

“They want to be hard to beat without creating too much right now.

“You need players to do something different and they haven’t got that at the moment.”