Arsenal survive Mansfield scare to reach FA Cup quarter-finals with 2-1 win

MANSFIELD, England, March 7 : Arsenal beat third-tier Mansfield Town 2-1 to move into the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday after Eberechi Eze scored a second-half winner for the Premier League leaders.

Mikel Arteta named a much-changed side, starting teenagers Max Dowman and Marli Salmon, as Arsenal became the first Premier League side to start a competitive game with two players aged 16 or under in any competition.

Feeding off a raucous home crowd, Mansfield created several early chances to unsettle Arsenal, but it was the London club that went 1-0 up when Noni Madueke curled a powerful finish into the far corner.

Mansfield substitute Will Evans capitalised on poor defending to equalise early in the second half, but Arsenal regained their lead when Eze fired a thunderbolt from the edge of the box to silence the crowd at Field Mill.