Burnley, much like Sheffield Wednesday were in the fourth round of the League Cup this season, are the underdogs against Arsenal on Saturday.
But at Hillsborough, the Gunners put in an awful display to lose 3-0. The same sort of performance this weekend would not be acceptable, and Arsène Wenger knows it.
Sitting in third in the Championship, the Clarets are tough opposition and will be looking to cause a famous cup shock against an Arsenal side which is set to be heavily rotated. It means players coming into the team will have to be sharp, and Wenger is preaching humility.
“We have learnt something this season, we went to Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup and got quite a severe defeat. We have to show we have learnt from that,” Wenger said.
He played a fairly strong side for that defeat to Sheffield Wednesday, but the midfield mixture of inexperience and a lower technical ability than Arsenal fans are used to seeing came unstuck against a smart Championship side.
There should be plenty of experience on the pitch this time around, but that alone counts for very little.
“We have to be humble enough to accept that and to think it’s not because we turn up at the Emirates and play against Burnley that we will win the game.
“We have to earn the right to go through this round and qualify. If you don’t do that, we’ll have a bad surprise.”
In impressive form so far this season, Sean Dyche’s men are hardly different from the Burnley side which gave Arsenal two very tricky league games last season. Meanwhile, Arsenal have had some tough games at home this yea, including a third round win over Sunderland. The 3-1 scoreline was deserved, but for 75 minutes the game was very tight.
There can be no complacency and no mistakes this weekend, otherwise we’ll regret it.