FA Cup: Brighton 2-3 Arsenal – Walcott & Ozil On Target As Gunners Weather Second-Half Seagull Storm (Photos & Highlights)

Alan Duffy

25th, January 2015

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By Alan Duffy

Brighton & Hove Albion 2-3 Arsenal – FA Cup 4th Round – 25th January 2015

Despite yesterday’s massive giant-killing shocks in the FA Cup, holders Arsenal managed to keep their hopes of retaining the cup alive following a tricky tie on the south coast.

The Gunners, with Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil starting and Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla on the bench, totally dominated the first-half with the hosts unable to deal with the Premier League side’s quick passing. Walcott opened the scoring after just two minutes, courtesy of a superb finish. Ozil then doubled the Gunners’ advantage on 24 minutes as the visitors totally outplayed their Championship opponents.

After the break, the Seagulls finally woke up as Arsenal’s defending started to look shaky. Chris O’Grady made it 2-1 soon after the restart with a goal which energised the Amex crowd. However, the outstanding Tomas Rosicky looked to have killed off the game on the hour-mark after a marvellous first-time volley. But the home side refused to give up and set up a nervy finish for Arsene Wenger’s men  when Sam Baldock calmly finished. Still, with Alexis Sanchez on, Arsenal really should have bagged a couple more goals before ref Michael Oliver blew the final whistle.

Photos…

Highlights…

Photos: Getty Images

Highlights: Footytube