LONDON: Ten-man FA Cup holders Manchester United dispatched Arsenal in a third-round thriller decided by a penalty shootout on Sunday, while Tottenham Hotspur survived a major scare against non-league side Tamworth.

Premier League teams Newcastle United, Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace and Southampton also punched their tickets to the fourth round with victories, while fourth-tier Doncaster Rovers advanced after a shootout.

Joshua Zirkzee struck the winning penalty for 10-man Manchester United after their hectic tie finished 1-1 after extra time at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal’s Kai Havertz was the only one of the first four penalty takers to miss, denied by a brilliant stop from Altay Bayindir, before Zirkzee stepped up to win the shootout 5-3.

“I just want to help this great team,” second-choice goalkeeper Bayindir told the BBC. “I want to make everyone happy for this great club ... if you are not playing it doesn’t matter.

“You have to be ready every minute, every second if you are a United player you have to be ready always.”

United took the lead in the 52nd minute through Bruno Fernandes’ curling effort from just inside the box after a great run by Alejandro Garnacho.

The game turned on its head 10 minutes later though, as United’s Diogo Dalot received a second yellow card for a reckless tackle on Mikel Merino.

Two minutes later, Bayindir’s poor attempted punch fell at the feet of Gabriel, whose shot took a wicked deflection off Matthijs de Ligt and in to put the Gunners in charge of the tie.

Arsenal were awarded a questionable penalty after Havertz went down under minimal contact from Harry Maguire. But, after a brief melee which saw Maguire, Havertz and Gabriel booked, Bayindir produced a superb save from Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard in the 72nd minute.

“I am working everyday,” Bayindir said. “I am patient. I just want to help this great team. I want to make everyone happy for this great club. I’m working here everyday.”

Meanwhile, Spurs needed extra time to beat brave fifth-tier Tamworth, 96 places below them in the English football pyramid, 3-0, thanks to an own goal from Nathan Tshikuna and strikes from Dejan Kulusevski and Brennan Johnson.

The game had the makings of a huge upset from the opening whistle as Tamworth more than held their own on the artificial Lamb Ground pitch and had a couple of brilliant scoring chances late on. But the team of part-time players tired and were unable to secure one of the biggest shocks in the competition.

After a goalless 90 minutes, Nathan Tshikuna’s own goal in the 101st minute put Spurs ahead. Substitute Dejan Kulusevski doubled the lead when he latched onto a pass from Son Heung-min to shoot into the bottom corner and Johnson added a late third.

Elsewhere, Newcastle survived a scare from fourth-tier Bromley in a 3-1 victory that gave them eight successive wins in all competitions.

Cameron Congreve’s long-range strike gave Bromley an eighth-minute lead at St James’ Park in their first FA Cup third round appearance.

But Lewis Miley’s 25-yard blast hauled Newcastle level in the 16th minute.

Anthony Gordon converted a 49th-minute penalty before Will Osula’s 61st-minute rocket sealed the victory.

Crystal Palace beat third-tier Stockport 1-0 at Selhurst Park, while Ipswich defeated third-tier Bristol Rovers 3-0 at Portman Road.

Southampton’s new manager Ivan Juric earned his first win

as the Premier League’s bottom side beat second-tier Swansea 3-0 at St Mary’s.

League Two Doncaster booked their fourth-round berth with a penalty shootout victory over Championship side Hull City. The tense shootout ended 5-4 after regulation and extra time ended in a 1-1 draw.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2025