Sunday, January 29, 2012

Arsenal recovers 2-0 deficit to advance in FA Cup

LONDON (AP)—Arsenal kept its bid to end a seven-year trophy drought on track Sunday, scoring three times in eight second-half minutes to beat Aston Villa 3-2 and reach the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Villa led 2-0 at halftime on goals by Richard Dunne and Darren Bent, prompting near silence from Arsenal fans still waiting for a trophy to follow the 2005 FA Cup.
The home side got back in the game with Robin van Persie’s 54th-minute penalty, tied it on Theo Walcott’s lucky rebound and took the lead in the 61st on a second spot kick from Van Persie.
Middlesbrough and Sunderland will replay on Feb. 7 for the right to face Arsenal after drawing their fourth-round match 1-1.

Having avoided a fourth straight defeat, the Gunners are now just three games away from a Wembley final.
“We tried to keep focused and calm,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. “It is an opportunity but you could see today how hard the games are.”
Arsenal great Thierry Henry missed a late chance after coming on in the 89th for the third appearance of his loan from the New York Red Bulls of MLS, but home fans could still cheer the result.
Robbie Keane, on-loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy, provided the cross that led to Dunne’s 33rd-minute opener.
Second-tier Middlesbrough led against its local rival when Barry Robson capitalized on some weak defending to smash a 16th-minute volley across goalkeeper Simon Mignolet and in at the far post.
Sunderland manager Martin O’Neill introduced striker Fraizer Campbell at halftime for his first appearance since August 2010, and the former Manchester United trainee stroked in a low shot 14 minutes later following a mistake by Robson.
Campbell had not played for the first team for 500 days because of knee injuries.
Crawley Town, the lowest-ranked side left in this season’s FA Cup, was handed a meeting with Premier League club Stoke in Sunday’s fifth-round draw.
Liverpool will meet Brighton, Chelsea will host Birmingham, Norwich will host Leicester, Everton will play Blackpool or Sheffield Wednesday, and Bolton will go to the winner of the replay between Millwall and Southampton. Tottenham is at Stevenage.

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