The Mansfield Town vs Arsenal game in the Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round was set up to be a proper David vs Goliath clash.
Mikel Arteta’s Premier League leaders travelled to the One Call Stadium in search of a place in the Emirates FA Cup Quarter-Finals.
However, Nigel Clough’s Stags side looked to cause yet another Emirates FA Cup upset as they looked to frustrate the Premier League giants in their own backyard.
Mansfield Town vs Arsenal: Substitute Eze Gets The Winner In The Gunners’ Narrow Victory Over Mansfield Town
Arsenal’s first chance came from a poor pass from Liam Roberts as Max Dowman latched onto the ball.
The teenager drove forward and struck an effort goalwards, but the Mansfield Town goalkeeper made amends with a good save to deny him.
Mansfield Town didn’t shy away from the challenge as Tyler Roberts looked to cause a threat to the Arsenal defence.
The forward twisted and turned before sending a looping effort goalwards, which was claimed by Kepa.
The Stags continued to pile on the pressure with shots from Louis Reed and Rhys Oates, which required interventions from Kepa and the Arsenal defence.
Mansfield Town’s solidity continued as the defence kept tight and the attack continued to strike, but couldn’t hit the target.
The Gunners looked to cause trouble down the wings with Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli, but the Stags’ defence was able to deal with the threat and keep Arsenal quiet for the time being.
Arsenal’s bombardment continued as Dowman had an effort that was saved by Roberts. Moments later, Madueke got an inch of space to shoot but fired his effort high and wide.
The Mansfield Town vs Arsenal game continued to be end-to-end as Oates managed to skip past Ricardo Calafiori and send a low ball into the box, but it was intercepted by the diving Kepa.
Arsenal managed to finally break the deadlock in the 40th minute. Madueke’s first effort was parried away by Roberts, but Martinelli recycled the ball back to his fellow winger, who, on his second attempt, found the back of the net.
Arsenal started the second half brightly as the Premier League leaders made inroads forward but failed to hit the target.
Moments later, the Mansfield Town vs Arsenal game saw a leveller. A poor pass from Marli Salmon set substitute Will Evans away as he skipped past Cristhian Mosquera and shot low under Kepa into the back of the net.
Teenager Dowman looked to put the visitors back in front as he drove forward, evading challenges from the Stags defence. The young Englishman sent a dangerous shot goalwards, but Roberts made another fantastic save.
A five-on-two counterattack from Arsenal saw Madueke pass the ball out wide to Dowman, who squared it to Gabriel Jesus. The Brazilian was stretching and lobbed Roberts, but a goal-line clearance from Kyle Knoyle saved the Stags.
The Gunners were back in front once again six minutes after the hour mark in the Mansfield Town vs Arsenal clash.
A thunderstrike from substitute Eberechi Eze arrowed into the top right corner as Arsenal took a 2-1 lead.
Substitute Bukayo Saka was played through by Madueke as Arsenal looked to add a third, but the winger’s shot was saved by the impressive Roberts.
Arsenal used their impressive squad strength to control the ball and keep hold of it as the minutes ticked down, with a place in the Emirates FA Cup Quarter-Finals pretty much theirs.
In the end, the Premier League leaders hung on to claim a marginal victory in the Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round as the Stags bowed out of the competition after making Arsenal work massively to get the win.
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Mansfield Town vs Arsenal: Youngster Max Dowman Putting On A Midfield Masterclass
The 16-year-old, coming back from an ankle injury, returned to the Arsenal first team squad for the first time since late November.
Dowman, who is a current England under-19s international, has continued to impress the Arsenal fans and manager Mikel Arteta after breaking through into the first team this season, following an impressive 2024/25 U18 Premier League campaign.
The attacking midfielder scored 15 goals in 15 games last season in the under-18s league at the young age of 15.
Madueke and Eze may have taken the headlines after their goals in the Mansfield Town vs Arsenal game, but it was Dowman’s willing running, his skill, his flair and his chance creating that put him down as one of the players of the game.
The highly valued teenager took the joint-most amount of shots, had the most touches in the opposition box and had the joint-most successful dribbles.
On the pitch, he was also the player who was fouled the most, once again showcasing his quality and Mansfield Town’s need to bring him down.
In his 77 minutes in the Mansfield Town vs Arsenal game, Dowman proved his worth and why he should remain in and around the Gunners’ squad.
To say that he has been out injured for the last four months, the 16-year-old wonderkid didn’t show any signs of weakness and looked to pick up from where he left off.
Mansfield Town vs Arsenal: Stags Fall Short But Showed Character, Discipline And Determination Until The End
After a fairytale Emirates FA Cup run, Mansfield Town bowed out of the competition after a fantastic game against one of England’s best teams.
League One Mansfield Town very much went toe-to-toe with the Gunners, matched them in shot attempts and held their own against a Premier League heavyweight.
The likes of Oates, Roberts and substitute Evans had a fantastic afternoon coming up against the Arsenal defence.
The Stags’ frontline had the Gunners’ defence chasing shadows, as the pace of Oates and the skill of Roberts in the first half, and then the determination of Evans in the second half, very much had the hosts in the tie until the very end.
In addition, we shouldn’t forget about the heroics of Roberts in between the Mansfield Town sticks, who must have saved a shot with every single part of his body.
For 90 minutes, all the Stags players, including the substitutes, put in a gargantuan effort to stop Mikel Arteta’s machine.
Most neutral fans would have watched this game and saw that Arsenal escaped with a win that was slightly fortunate.
With the gulf of quality that they had on the pitch, the League One club should have been out of sight a long time before the half-time; however, Nigel Clough’s men stuck to the plan and managed to get an equaliser.
Even though they went on to lose 2-1 in the end, the League One side created many great memories in the Emirates FA Cup this season and proved that the magic of the cup is still very much alive in English football.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Action Plus
Recording Date: 07.03.2026
