We kick off our FA Youth Cup campaign on Wednesday night when we face Cheltenham Town at Jonny-Rocks Stadium.
THE STORY SO FAR
Ken Gillard’s under-18s have made a mixed start to the season, but have produced some impressive results along the way.
We put five goals past Aston Villa early on, as a Ben Cottrell brace alongside goals from Miguel Azeez, Alfie Mathews and Sam Greenwood secured a comprehensive away victory.
Azeez then scored again in our 3-0 Premier League Cup success against Wolves and, last time out in the league, we twice battled back from a goal down to claim a 2-2 draw with high flying Fulham, away from home.
THE OPPOSITION
The Robins started their campaign strongly as they swept past Eastleigh in the first round, to set up a second-round tie with Portsmouth.
An eventful match at Jonny-Rocks Stadium saw 12 goals shared between the two sides, as the hosts progressed into the third round with a 8-4 victory.
Callum Ebanks scored four goals in the win, while Charlie Stanton bagged a brace.
ONE TO WATCH
Azeez has featured prominently for our under-18s this season, scoring once and registering two assists.
The midfielder signed his first professional contract with the club in October, and featured for our under-21s in a narrow defeat to Peterborough in the Leasing.com Trophy.
Calm on the ball with the ability to turn defence into attack, Azeez has flourished in either a deep midfield role or in a more advanced position.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
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Stay close to Arsenal.com for our match report and post-match reaction from Ken Gillard.
By Sam Cox
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