Sports
Arsenal’s Young Players ‘Worth the Risk,’ Says Mikel Arteta After FA Cup Win
Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty ImagesArsenal manager Mikel Arteta said his young players are “worth the risk” after a youthful Gunners side beat Portsmouth 2-0 at Fratton Park in the FA Cup on Monday. Goals from Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Eddie Nketiah secured Arsenal a spot in the quarter-finals after Arteta named a starting XI that included six players aged 20 or under:B/R…
Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty Images
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said his young players are “worth the risk” after a youthful Gunners side beat Portsmouth 2-0 at Fratton Park in the FA Cup on Monday.
Goals from Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Eddie Nketiah secured Arsenal a spot in the quarter-finals after Arteta named a starting XI that included six players aged 20 or under:
B/R Football @brfootball
Arsenal’s young stars turn it on when they play this season 🌟 https://t.co/AmCcqSMmlt
The Gunners were widely expected to get past the League One outfit, but it was a tough assignment for Arsenal's youngsters given Pompey went into the clash on a 10-game winning run at home.
Arteta acknowledged after the win that it was a risk fielding such a young side, per BBC Sport (h/t Tom Doyle of the Evening Standard):
“I'm really pleased with them [the youngsters]. I'm enjoying working with the players. They deserve a chance. It's always a risk, but they're worth the risk.”
The Spaniard also told BT Sport he has “faith in the kids” and Monday's match was a good learning experience for the youngsters:
Football on BT Sport @btsportfootball
“Reiss Nelson is a special talent, he can eliminate players one vs one. That's what he is capable of.”
Mikel Arteta was delighted to see his young charges advance in the FA Cup, especially with Reiss Nelson back in the side.
🎙 @ReshminTV https://t.co/lXZwSlenog
The FA Cup is Arsenal's only remaining chance to win any silverware this term after they were knocked out of the UEFA Europa League last week by Olympiacos.
The Gunners are the most successful side ever in the competition having won it 13 times, including three times in four seasons from 2013-14.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are still in with a chance of qualifying for next season's UEFA Champions League given a fifth-place Premier League finish could be good enough after Manchester City were handed a two-year UEFA ban for breaching financial fair play rules.
The north London outfit sit 10th in the table, but they are only five points off fifth with a game in hand over most of their rivals:
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#MondayMotivation? https://t.co/TyFmLUVSQo
Arsenal also have winnable league games approaching against relegation-battling sides West Ham United (March 7), Brighton & Hove Albion (March 14) and Norwich City (April 4).
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