The FA Cup thrives on drama. Giant-killings and upsets headline each third round.
Lower-league underdogs test themselves.
Premier League sides show vulnerabilities. It’s chaos. It’s magic.
At the Emirates Stadium on January 12, 2025, football felt ruthless.
A Bruno Fernandes strike pulled Manchester United ahead in the 52nd minute.
Arsenal responded two minutes later when Gabriel Magalhães equalised—just as Diogo Dalot received a second yellow, reducing United to 10 men.
Arsenal poured forward. They dominated the remainder of 120 minutes but couldn’t break through.
Martin Ødegaard missed a crucial penalty in regulation time—only one of many squandered chances. The match ended 1–1.
Extra time passed without a breakthrough. Penalties loomed.
Arsenal had more attempts blocked; their set of takers shrank due to a rarely enforced FA Cup rule—William Saliba couldn’t step up, leaving them with fewer shooters than United.
The shootout swung United’s way. Manchester United advanced 5–3 on penalties.
Arsenal huffed and puffed, registering 26 shots to United’s seven, but lacked the killer touch. Even with a one-man advantage for nearly an hour, they left with nothing but regrets.
Manager Mikel Arteta summed it up bluntly: “Incredible how you don’t win the game… We didn’t get what we deserved clearly… We go home extremely sad but I cannot be prouder of my players.” as reported by Reuters.
This marks Arsenal’s third exit at the third-round stage in four seasons—a continuing pattern for the club with the most FA Cup triumphs.
Arsenal dominated yet were undone. United survived, eked out victory, and lived to fight another round.