He’s only 20 years old so there’s a lot more to come from him. I can remember that vividly myself and it had nothing to do with me, I just watched it on the television. “You can not say these days that a manager plays a weaker team because they have 25 players in the squad that are of Premier League quality”.
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Both Arsene Wenger and Sam Allardyce have dropped hints Saturday’s match will see several reserve and youth players being given run outs as key men rest after the remorseless run of festive fixtures.
Allardyce wouldn’t publicly confirm that Pickford is that “one player”, but the goalkeeper has been brought back to his boyhood club with the challenge of ousting Vito Mannone and Costel Pantilimon from the number one spot.
The former Chelsea stopper has since gone on to break the Premier League clean sheet record and has drawn plenty of plaudits for his form as Arsenal squeezed through in Europe while moving clear at the top of the league. Why should you not play Saturday, Tuesday or Wednesday? Their last FA Cup final was in 1992 where they lost 2-0 to Liverpool.
“It would be an unbelievable achievement [to win it for the third time in a row] and I’m sure everyone will be everything to get there”.
Here we are again, the first weekend of January. A win here would be most unlikely but I have a feeling it might just be one of those days for Arsenal.
“There may be some priorities at some stage of the season for some clubs who think they are in trouble (against injuries) and have to make these kinds of decisions, so they choose”.
“I’m long enough in the job to not expect any weakness from Sam Allardyce”, Wenger said. We are the holders of the cup and I know as well by experience that it is very important that you get in the competition and that you have a successful third round.
Arsenal have won each of their last 12 games in this competition and have beaten Premier League opposition in the third round for three years running.
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Wenger has suggested that Theo Walcott could start but Alexis Sanchez has been ruled out after failing to prove his fitness following a hamstring injury so the Chilean joins Danny Welbeck, Jack Wilshere, Francis Coquelin, Tomas Rosicky and Santi Cazorla on the sidelines.
