Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes has urged his teammates to back the victory over Arsenal with another impressive performance against Southampton.
Underdogs Manchester United claimed a mighty impressive shootout victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup 3rd Round on Sunday, 12th January.
Fernandes opened the scoring for the Red Devils in the 52nd minute at the Emirates Stadium. Nine minutes later, Diogo Dalot saw a second yellow card for a challenge on Mikel Merino, leaving the visitors in a vulnerable state. It took Arsenal just a couple of minutes to make their advantage count, as Gabriel Magalhaes equalized from an excellent volley.
After conceding, Manchester United pulled down the shutters, doing their best to deny the Gunners clear-cut goalscoring opportunities. Arsenal could have won the game in the 72nd minute when they won a penalty, but Martin Odegaard failed to convert.
With the score level at 1-1 after 120 minutes of football, the match went to penalties. Man Utd goalkeeper Altay Bayindir denied Kai Havertz from the spot to secure a 5-3 win in the shootout and the Red Devils’ ticket to the FA Cup 4th Round.
Manchester United: Bruno Fernandes Eager to Build on FA Cup Win Over Arsenal
Speaking to MUTV after the game, the Portuguese playmaker said now it was time to give back to fans after a difficult period.
“I know we want to celebrate and everything, but our focus is now on Southampton [on Thursday] – that is when we have to back it up,” said Fernandes.
“The big games against Liverpool [and] Arsenal, everyone steps up because it is a big game. We suffered a lot but we sacrificed as a team, and in the end, you get this. You want to be in these kinds of games, you want to be involved, you want to be the best but we have to do it in Old Trafford with these fans again. We have to give it back to the club. We need to do it every week, every game.”
Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United will face Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Leicester City in the FA Cup 4th Round at Old Trafford on 8th February.
