Man Utd’s FA Cup redemption hands Arsenal a lesson that can save their season | OneFootball

While Ruben Amorim said that he instantly felt “today was our day”, Mikel Arteta now has to figure out what next for Arsenal’s season.

So much for the FA Cup losing its meaning. This defiant penalty shoot-out victory for 10-man Manchester United could have significant consequences for the campaigns of both clubs. For Amorim, it only fosters momentum and a greater sense of unity after last Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Liverpool.

These are the kind of results, and battles, on which greater things are built. Necessary “sufferings”, as Amorim would put it, not least for redemptive match-winning heroes Altay Bayindir and Joshua Zirkzee. United’s day meanwhile put a cap on Arsenal’s week, right up to the injury to Gabriel Jesus.

Mikel Arteta’s team could only draw 1-1 with Brighton in the Premier League, lose 2-0 at home to Newcastle United in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals and now lose 5-3 on penalties to go out of the FA Cup third round after an immensely frustrating 1-1 draw.

As with the defeat to Newcastle, this was another case of so many missed chances, when Arsenal were just crying out for a finisher. Martin Odegaard’s missed penalty would even have done it.

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Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United celebrates scoring (Manchester United via Getty Images)

A playmaker squandering a spot-kick in a raucous FA Cup tie against United? That, as well as so many other elements of this game, has happened when these two clubs have met in this competition before. It is probably the pairing with the richest history in the competition, and this only added to it.

Other symmetries and sub-plots further elevated this tie. The most famous ever Arsenal-United cup meeting, in 1998-99, only got to those levels because it was the last semi-final to go to a replay. The unique circumstances made the event. The competition has now done away with replays altogether and, the grander debate about that aside, that decision was one reason why this one reached such a high level. It ensured this match was a self-contained epic in its own right, or at least evolved into just that.

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Gabriel Magalhaes of Arsenal celebrates scoring (Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

The fact that the competition now brings every match down to one day makes it all the more likely that each tie will come down to single players, and that was the case here. This match was all about individual stories, enriching the event.

For United, it was redemption. Bayindir’s last domestic cup game saw him suffer a hugely difficult game at Tottenham Hotspur in a Carabao Cup elimination but he responded here with a series of brilliant saves and a decisive penalty stop in the shoot-out.

That set it up for Zirkzee, whose last moment of note on a pitch was United fans cheering his first-half substitution against Newcastle. They made a point of cheering his every touch here, but that turned to jubilation when he slotted the winning penalty.

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Manchester United's Amad Diallo celebrates (AP)

“It’s really important not just for them but all the players, your life as a player has cycles, and moments, and sometimes in one week your life can change,” Amorim said. “Joshua three weeks ago had an issue with our fans, today every time they are singing his name.”

That’s the magic of football, as well as the cup, and one of its great moral lessons. Some of Arteta’s players could do with heeding the words, especially Kai Havertz. His team will wonder how they went out after missing so many chances, with the German missing two right in front of goal even before Bayindir saved his penalty. Arsenal’s pressure only increased after Diogo Dalot was sent off for a second booking.

United conspicuously posted “justice” on social media after the shoot-out victory, and it was impossible not to feel that was in reference to the penalty awarded after Harry Maguire’s challenge on Havertz, as well as some other decisions. The game, at the very least, emphasised how much officials have come to depend on VAR. There was often a sense of chaos. A clarity emerged for United out of that.

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Manchester United goalkeeper Altay Bayindir celebrates after winning the shoot-out (Mike Egerton/PA Wire)

Arteta may have been right in asserting that Arsenal were deserved winners based on chances and general play – “Incredible you don’t win the game, we did everything,” the manager said – but United deserved just as much in terms of defiance and resilience. There was an admirable character to their performance, that Amorim has already instilled.

The match may not have been how he wants to play but it can eventually serve that by fortifying confidence and belief. As Arteta’s own time at Arsenal shows, performance often follows results. The latter can help point the way.

This result is meanwhile the product of proactive decision-making, of showing who is boss. On that, Amorim was asked whether Marcus Rashford has played his last game for United, as many people believe to be the case given that he was left out again.

“We’ll see,” Amorim said. “He loves the club, I have to make choices. Let’s see the next game.” Arteta has choices of his own, most of all up front.

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Arsenal's Kai Havertz, Gabriel Magalhaes and Raheem Sterling look dejected (Reuters)

Havertz has many qualities and has already done a lot for Arsenal, but it’s long been clear they need more up front. That was painfully clear by the time he spooned his second big chance over, trying to strike the ball in a curious way which a proper finisher just wouldn’t. It’s difficult not to feel they rocked his confidence and led to the later penalty miss.

Havertz was straight down the tunnel at the end. Arteta of course only showed support and “love” afterwards. It’s known the manager still wants another forward, mind. The club’s hand may now be forced. Gabriel Jesus went off with a knee injury in the first half, and Arteta described it as a “big worry”, that is “not looking good”.

It’s a pity given the Brazilian’s recent resurgence but Arsenal now need to change the look of their season. Buying that forward seems to be the best way. They were already short. It may take a long shot. Arteta loves Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams but his wage demands are very high. The club have a growing interest in Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres, to go with Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, but the former would require £80m they would rather spend in the summer. The time to act is now, though.

That’s what these moments sometimes take, that bit of extra investment; rolling the dice. On the other side, free FA Cup weekends mean Arteta finally has the time and space to give his stretched squad some breathing space.

That may be what they need almost as much as another forward. That will only be worth it if they now go and win one of the three other competitions, though. And, sometimes, it’s not about the bigger picture. It’s about the day, and the pure spirit of the competition you’re playing in.

That’s what United have again found with the FA Cup. The grand old competition may now bring new life for Amorim.