Mar 4, 2026, 02:47 PM
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Mansfield boss Nigel Clough does not want VAR to influence his side's fairytale FA Cup clash with Arsenal on Saturday.
The much-maligned video review system is being brought in for all fifth-round ties this weekend, though that might come as a relief to some after a raft of poor decisions went unchecked in last month's fourth round.
The League One side have only ever played with VAR once -- the 2022 League Two playoff final defeat -- so his side may not be as savvy as their Premier League opponents.
Clough, who has guided his club to this stage of the competition for the first time in 51 years after beating Burnley in the last round, hopes it does not feature too heavily.
"We had it in the play-off defeat against Port Vale, that's the only time we've experienced in the last five and a half years," he said.
"I think if you played the early rounds without it, I don't think you should need it at this point.
"It might give them a small advantage because they certainly know how it works.
"I just hope there's no controversy with it, as there has been in the first six months of this season, and it's decided by good play on the pitch, rather than somebody having a look at the television screen."
Mansfield shocked Burnley with a 2-1 win to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup. Getty
VAR could well play a role a set-pieces given the Gunners have raised the bar this season, with a new style of corners where they flood the goal-line and box the opposition goalkeeper in.
"Whatever Arsenal have been doing, people will copy as well, because it is so successful to a certain degree," he said.
"But they haven't got [William] Saliba or Gabriel and people like that on the end of it, but they can certainly try and emulate it and cause problems in the same sort of way at our level.
"But how they do it is incredibly, incredibly efficient and successful, so it is a big part of the game.
"We just do our best we can, in terms of the goalkeeper, he has to help us out with a little punch or a catch now and again.
"And the other most important thing is don't give them away. If you can help, don't give corners away. Do everything you can not to give them the chance to put a set-play in your six-yard box."
Saturday lunchtime's kick-off is sandwiched between Wednesday night's Premier League game at Brighton and next week's Champions League tie with Bayer Leverkusen.
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But Clough knows whichever personnel play at Field Mill will cause them problems.
"I don't know if that makes much difference," he said.
"I can't see them playing too many players who played at Brighton or in the Champions League.
"There might be a few, but they have bigger fish than the FA Cup, because those two competitions are absolutely huge.
"We actually drew them in the Youth Cup here earlier on this season and they won 4-0.
"There were two or three players playing that night that would cause us problems in our first team, such is the quality that they have."