The Gunners will be keen to avoid a banana-skin cupset moment in the FA Cup when they travel to face Mansfield Town this weekend
Mikel Arteta manager / head coach of Arsenal reacts during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium on March 01, 2026 in London, England
Mikel Arteta gestures on the sidelines for Arsenal(Image: 2026 Catherine Ivill - AMA)
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Another FA Cup tie with giant-killing potential is set for Saturday lunchtime at Field Mill, where underdogs Mansfield Town host record winners Arsenal. The Stags earned their spot in the fifth round with a stunning 2-1 victory over Premier League strugglers Burnley, setting up a clash with the current top-flight leaders, who cruised past Portsmouth and Wigan Athletic in the earlier rounds.
After a period marked by early FA Cup exits, Arsenal have finally shaken off their recent woes in the competition, reaching the fifth round for the first time since their record-extending 14th triumph in 2019-20. Mikel Arteta’s side dispatched both Portsmouth and Wigan with ease in rounds three and four, scoring four goals against each and keeping their hopes alive for an unprecedented quadruple in the 2025-26 season.
Arsenal have not been knocked out at this stage of the FA Cup since 2012-13, when Arteta himself was part of the team that lost to Blackburn Rovers. The Gunners also haven’t been eliminated by a third-tier or lower side since 1992. However, with the Premier League and Champions League also in their sights, the FA Cup could be seen as a secondary objective for Arsenal. Their 1-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday, coupled with Manchester City’s slip-up against Nottingham Forest, has put them seven points clear at the top of the Premier League. Arsenal now head to Field Mill on a 10-match unbeaten run across all competitions, including a 12-game streak without defeat away from home—the longest since Arteta became manager.
Mansfield face daunting odds, but that didn’t stop them at Turf Moor, where a superb free kick sealed Burnley’s latest disappointment in a difficult 2025-26 campaign. Josh Laurent’s opener for Burnley was cancelled out by Rhys Oates’s header, before Louis Reed’s brilliant set-piece secured a famous win for the Stags—not quite Declan Rice versus Real Madrid, but memorable nonetheless.
That victory ended Mansfield’s 51-year wait for a place in the fifth round, and Saturday’s match carries extra significance for manager Nigel Clough. His father, Brian Clough, managed his final Nottingham Forest game against Arsenal in 1993, with Nigel himself playing in that 2-0 defeat.
Since their heroics at Burnley, however, Mansfield have struggled to maintain momentum, failing to win any of their four subsequent League One matches and collecting just two points from a possible 12, which has seen them slip to 16th in the table. Clough’s men have also failed to score in three of those four games, most recently drawing 0-0 with Rotherham United on Tuesday night. Regardless of Saturday’s result, Mansfield fans can savor a first meeting with Arsenal in 97 years—the Gunners won their last encounter 2-0 in a 1929 FA Cup tie.
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Arsenal’s only confirmed absentee for Saturday’s match is Mikel Merino, who remains sidelined for several months following foot surgery. However, there are fitness concerns over William Saliba (ankle), Martin Odegaard (knee), and Ben White (undisclosed issue), all of whom are doubtful for the trip to Field Mill.
Mikel Arteta’s midfield options are further limited by the suspension of Myles Lewis-Skelly, who must serve a one-match ban after picking up two bookings in this season’s FA Cup. With Lewis-Skelly suspended, Merino unavailable, and Declan Rice likely to be rested, Arteta may revisit the Bukayo Saka midfield experiment that paid off against Wigan. Still, Saka is also expected to be preserved for the upcoming Champions League clash with Bayer Leverkusen.
As a result, Kai Havertz is expected to drop into a deeper midfield role, supporting Gabriel Jesus up front. Jesus has an impressive record, having contributed to 20 goals in 19 cup appearances against non-Premier League opposition.
On the Mansfield side, they will be without captain Ryan Sweeney, who is sidelined with a hamstring injury. Fellow defender Baily Cargill is also likely to miss the rest of the season with a similar problem. The Stags suffered another setback in their recent match against Rotherham, as Luke Bolton was forced off after just 13 minutes with a calf injury, leaving his availability for Saturday’s historic fixture in doubt.
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