'We must treat Blackburn with respect'

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain believes concentration will be the key to victory in Saturday's FA Cup tie with Blackburn Rovers.

Arsenal take on the Championship side this weekend after narrowly edging out another lower-league side, Brighton, in the fourth round, and Oxlade-Chamberlain has warned that anything less than 100 per cent focus from the Gunners will lead to an FA Cup upset.

"I think that's the biggest danger in these games," he told the official matchday programme. "As a professional you always try to remain 100 per cent focused, but there is a human element too, and sometimes you may lose concentration without even realising.

"You have to try to maintain your normal levels, treat the opposition with respect, and I think we did that against Brighton in the last round. They played some good stuff, but we approached it correctly and to get through was a real show of character, especially when we saw what happened to some of the other big teams that weekend."

Several Premier League sides were beaten by lower-ranked opposition during a dramatic FA Cup fourth round, and Oxlade-Chamberlain says Arsenal are determined not to join that list at the weekend.

"You never know what might happen," he said. "You always get strange results and big upsets in the FA Cup especially. When a big club takes on a lower league side, anything can happen. If you switch off at all, and the opponents are up for it, they will punish you.

"We have to give the type of performance that we owe to ourselves, that the fans deserve and that the manager deserves. If we are focused on doing that I'm sure we can get through to the next round."