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Bournemouth 1-2 Arsenal: 3 Talking points | FA Cup 2019/20

AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal FC - FA Cup Fourth Round
AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal FC - FA Cup Fourth Round

In the final game of the FA Cup fourth round, Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth welcomed the Gunners to the Vitality Stadium. The two teams' most recent encounter ended 1-1 and was also coincidentally Mikel Arteta’s first game as Arsenal manager, just over a month ago. The winner of this match would have an away trip to Fratton Park in the fifth round awaiting them.

Mikel Arteta’s men opened the scoring in emphatic fashion as Bukayo Saka hammered home from nine yards to cap off a brilliant move in the eighth minute. The Gunners added an impressive second as Saka would turn provider for an Eddie Nketiah tap-in in the 26th minute to see them go 2-0 up into half time.

The score would stay the same until injury time, when substitute Sam Surridge would score a late consolation, but it wouldn’t be enough to stop the Gunners from going through.           


#3 Valuable minutes for Rob Holding & Dani Ceballos

AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal FC - FA Cup Fourth Round
AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal FC - FA Cup Fourth Round

For a long time now, the Gunners have been synonymous with injuries. Under the days of Arsène Wenger, internal inquiries were held in response to how many injuries the players were getting. Now a similar crisis has stricken the squad with Sead Kolašinac, Kieran Tierney, Shkodran Mustafi and Calum Chambers all injured for the Gunners in the defensive department.

In perhaps more pleasing news, both Rob Holding and Dani Ceballos have made full recoveries and gained valuable playing time tonight. Ceballos hasn’t been seen in an Arsenal shirt since early November, while Holding has made two appearances since the start of the year.

With the Spaniard threatening to cut his loan short, the 23-year-old completed 15 passes, took three corners and linked up well with Matteo Guendouzi in a tidy 21-minute cameo. As for Holding, he came on for an injured Mustafi, meaning this may be his chance to break into the starting line-up. The former Bolton player completed 14 passes, made 2 tackles and 1 interception in a cameo that won’t fill Mikel Arteta with that much confidence. 

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