Beating West Ham United in a quarter-final replay on Wednesday night, Manchester United stayed in the FA Cup and kept their hopes of matching Arsenal’s all-time wins record alive.
The Gunners won the trophy in each of the last two season, heading onto 12 victories in the competition, more than any other side in the history of the world’s most famous domestic cup competition.
Manchester United, though, have 11 FA Cups to their name. Despite not lifting the trophy since 2004, the Red Devils have a rich and famous tradition of doing well in the competition.
Goals from Marcus Rashford and Marouane Fellaini sealed the win for Louis van Gaal’s side, who head into the semi-final against Everton at Wembley on the 23rd April. Hopefully ,Roberto Martinez’s side can head into the final if only to preserve Arsenal’s record.
The season has been a disappointing one for both sides and they will hope to placate fans by winning the competition. Manchester United, in particular, need something to boost morale and Louis van Gaal’s future is currently up in the air, though that is likely to remain the case even if they win the cup.
Arsenal had hoped to become the first team since the 19th Century to win the FA Cup three years in a row but lost a quarter-final to Watford.