Five Key Takeaways after Arsenal beat Mansfield to make it 100 goals for the season 

Here's the must-read Charlie Ashmore with his opinions after Arsenal made it through to the FA Cup quarter-finals

1 - That was a proper cup tie…           

And I absolutely loved it.  Two division separated the sides but my goodness Mansfield deserve credit for the fight they put up.   

A tidy ground, with a disproportionately noisy fanbase, they set up a cracking atmosphere. The pitch at first glance looked better than expected but was clearly a long way form the carpets our chaps are used to playing on and there was evidence of some discomfort with the surface. Which is both fine and exactly as it should be. Their team and their fans were an absolute credit to the Football League and everyone involved at Mansfield should feel very proud this morning. 

I didn’t even mind paying £6 for a programme – I don’t begrudge the club maximising the occasion one little bit. 

The Mansfield players put a lot of Premier League players to shame as did their manager Nigel Clough – a wonderful footballer in his time and a good manager if not quite as bliockbuster as his father. 

Unlike many a Premier League side they came to take us on – they gave it a damned good go and make no mistake they gave us several scares and a draw would not have been an unfair outcome.

2 - Necessary rotation delivers a lack of familiarity

Before the game the chat in our end was all about how we would line up – 3 at the back? 4 at the back?  Which of our 5 attackers would find themselves in midfield with Christian Norgaard – or was he going to make up a back 4? 

As it happened we started with three at the back and looked quite uncomfortable with it. 

I suspect many a true word was being spoken in jest when Mikel Arteta said they had spent ten minutes practicing the formation!  Leo Trossard was the most obvious of our square pegs in round holes given he played in midfield and it was no coincidence that it was when he was subbed (hopefully on a precautionary basis only) that we began to find a bit more of a groove as we reverted to four at the back and a system the players understood. 

This is not a criticism at all – I was delighted with the rotation and the formation was clearly felt to the best way to use the available resources.  We won so job done and the details from yesterday become irrelevant.

3 - What a player we have in Max Dowman

The standout player on the pitch was a 16 year old. 

Any control we had came from him. He outshone not only the more experienced internationals we had in our side but he saw off the real test provided by a hardened group League One players. His footwork was exquisite.  Look at the way he set up a chance for Gabi Martinelli in the first half – his close control was superb and put the defender on the wrong foot to give Martinelli a clear shot at goal. 

Look at the way he extracted himself from a tight spot on the edge of our box with three players around him, only to end up at the other end of the pitch to finish off the move with a sidefoot which unfortunately went straight to the keeper.  Look at the way he set up a chance for himself in the second half – denied by a good save from the stretching keeper.

Look at the way he set Gabi Jesus up in the second half – the effort eventually cleared off the line. 

He was also defied by a good save with the foot in the first 5 minutes and was a constant threat to Mansfield. 

In Martin Odegaard's continued absence we may just need a bit of Dowman to help unlock a defence or two in the final straight of this season.  A joy to watch.

4 - Some regulars let themselves down

As good as Max Dowman was I am afraid there were some really poor performances from players we really need to be coming good over the next couple of months. 

Gabi Jesus was anonymous. Gabi Martinelli made bad decision after bad decision. Yes, he was involved in Noni Madueke’s goal but even then I am not sure it was the right decision – Madueke just made the very best of it. 

How many times did he try to cross only to hit the defender?  He had chances which he should have done better with. His dribbling was largely unsuccessful.  Mosquera had his worst game for us. I thought he was really poor for their goal – I appreciate the pass from Marli Salmon wasn’t great but he needed to be more decisive and stronger and he was neither. 

I thought Kepa should have done better for the goal as well. 

Players like this should be showing their quality in games against lower league teams and they didn’t. 

5 - 100 Up

We scored our 100th and 101st goals of the season on Saturday.

Across Europe’s top Leagues, we are just the third to do so behind Bayern Munich and Barcelona. Not bad for the team that apparently represents anti-football, eh? 

No mention of that in Martin Samuel’s disgraceful piece in the Sunday Times today which has the effrontery to suggest that if we win the League we will be the most controversial champions ever. 

Leaving aside that he trots out all the old tropes about timewasting without bothering to actually look at the facts, how can he seriously suggest that when six of the last eight titles have been won by a team which is currently awaiting the outcome in respect of no fewer than 115 breaches of the rules. 

As a mate pointed out to me this morning this team wouldn’t even be the most controversial Arsenal champions given the 1990-91 side’s two point deduction and a captain who spent time in jail for drink-driving. Journalism like this is an embarrassment both  to its author and the profession. 

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