Arsenal Stunned in FA Cup Quarterfinals

While it’s an off weekend for the EPL, several sides were in action on Saturday as part of the English FA Cup quarterfinals. There were two sides that squared off against each other. Meanwhile, the other two faced off with competition from lower leagues.

While one of those two matchups had a predictable result, the other resulted in a stunning upset. Without further ado, let’s take a look at what unfolded on the pitch.

Manchester City 4, Liverpool 0

Manchester City was knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the round of 16. They were ousted after being outscored by a 5-1 aggregate to Real Madrid.  They bounced back in a big way by putting the boots to Liverpool. Meanwhile, Liverpool opens their Champions League quarterfinal with Paris Saint-Germain this week.

Erling Haaland opened the scoring with a goal off a penalty kick in the 39th minute. The goal came after Virgil van Dijk committed a foul in the penalty area. In added time just before the end of the first half, Haaland struck again. His second goal of the match at the 45 +2 minute mark made it a 2-0 score. He drove a header into the net off a cross by Antoine Semenyo.

Semenyo made it a 3-0 match at the 50-minute mark off an assist from Rayan Cherki on a through ball. Haaland capped the scoring and his hat trick with a goal in the 57th minute off an assist from Nico O'Reilly. Mohamed Salah had a chance to get Liverpool on the board but was stopped on a penalty kick in the 64th minute. The one-sided loss may have cranked up the temperature of Liverpool manager Arne Slot’s seat ahead of the Champions League fixtures with PSG.

Chelsea 7, Port Vale 0

A tilt between sixth-place Chelsea of the EPL and the basement dwelling Port Vale squad of English League One went according to Hoyle. Chelsea had little problem doing whatever they wanted as they cruised to the semifinals. They jumped in front in just the second minute of the match as Jorrel Hato tallied off a corner. João Pedro made it a 2-0 score in the 25th minute off an assist from Pedro Neto. An own goal by Port Vale’s Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel in the 42nd minute made it 3-0 Chelsea at intermission.

Tosin Adarabioyo extended to a 4-0 advantage in the 57th minute off a cross from Malo Gusto following a corner. Andrey Santos made it a 5-0 margin off an assist from Estêvão with a cross following a corner. That marker came in the 69th minute. Estêvão built Chelsea’s advantage to 6-0 in the 82nd minute on a marker that was awarded after VAR review. Alejandro Garnacho closed the onslaught as he scored on a penalty kick at the 90 + 2 mark. That came after he was fouled by Tyler Magloire.

The blowout win may have been a nice palate cleanser for Chelsea, who was upended by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League Round of 16. They also dropped their previous two EPL fixtures, losing to Newcastle United and Everton.

Southampton 2, Arsenal 1

This one was the shocker of the day. Arsenal, who leads the EPL by nine points and face Sporting CP in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal Tuesday, fell to the seventh-place side in the EFL. The loss, on the heels of a loss to Man City in the Carabao Cup March 22, is hardly the momentum you want heading into this match with Sporting CP.

Southampton opened the scoring in the 35th minute as Ross Stewart scored off a fast break opportunity spearheaded by James Bree. That remained the score at intermission. In the second half, Léo Scienza nearly gave Southampton a 2-0 lead but his shot rang off the bar in the 61st minute. That seemed to wake Arsenal up a bit. Viktor Gyökeres knotted the score in the 68th minute off an assist from Kai Havertz.

Gabriel Martinelli missed a chance to put Arsenal in front when his shot missed to the left in the 84th minute. Just a minute later, Shea Charles gave Southampton the lead with a goal in the 85th minute. Tom Fellows drew the assist on that marker. Arsenal had chances in the dying minutes but couldn’t find a way to get the equalizer, sending them to a stunning defeat.

Granted, this wasn’t a full strength Arsenal squad by any stretch. Piero Hincapie, Jurrien Timber, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka didn’t draw into the lineup. Meanwhile, Gabriel Magalhães left with what appeared to be a knee injury in the second half.