Dundee Utd 2-1 Spartans: Hosts advance to quarters after red card scare
Dundee United 2-1 Spartans Graham (31′) Fatah (55′) Stowe (78′) A goal in each half secured Dundee United’s passage to the Scottish Cup quarter-final, surviving nearly 80 minutes with a man down against Spartans at Tannadice. Jim Goodwin’s side secured a crucial three points at The Falkirk Stadium on Saturday, but Iurie Iovu’s 12th-minute red card delivered a horror start to their 5th Round tie. The Moldovan took out Bradley Whyte over the halfway line, and Grant Irvine brandished his red card to give the Arabs a mountain to climb. Despite the setback, the hosts continued to dominate the game. Captain Ross Graham rose to glance Will Ferry’s pinpoint corner past Paddy Martin, a crucial lead for Goodwin’s men. Amar Fatah doubled United’s lead 10 minutes into the second period. Clever play by Ivan Dolcek saw the Croatian drive past Spartan jerseys and thread an inviting pass into the attacker’s path. Fatah’s emphatic finish looked to have put the game behind their League two opposition. Spartans forced their way back in the game with 12 minutes remaining. A cross from the right found the Mark Stowe at the back post. The prolific striker added his 19th goal of the season, his heavily deflected strike looped over the stranded Ashley Maynard-Brewer to bring the visitors back into the match. The favourites would eventually see out proceedings, setting up a quarter-final showdown against Falkirk in a few weeks. Spartans gave a positive account of themselves, but will rue their inability to make the extra man count for almost 80 minutes. Dundee United: Maynard-Brewer, Strain, Iovu, Sevelj (Stephenson 84′) Graham, Camara, Ferry, Sibbald (Cleall-Harding 63′) Amar Fatah (Stirton 56′) Dolcek (Sapsford 56′) Watters (Farrugia 56′) Spartans: Martin, Watson, Welsh (Aiken 59′) Tapping (Nair 44′) Dishington (Wylie 81′) McNulty (Stowe 59′) Russell, Sonkur, Waugh, Craigen, Whyte
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Arsenal – Match Preview
20th place Wolves take on the League leaders Arsenal on Wednesday night, who will be looking to return to winning ways in the Premier League. The last time these sides met was only in December. Johnstone scored an own goal to put Arsenal in front after 70 minutes, but in the 90th minute, Tolu scored to equalise for the away side, however, in the 4th minute of additional time, Mosquera also put the ball in the back of his own net to give Arsenal all 3 points. Both sides come into this fixture off the back of victories in the FA Cup. Wolves beat League 2 outfit Grimsby Town 1-0 courtesy of a goal from Bueno on the hour mark. The Gunners come into this fixture off the back of a comfortable 4-0 home win against Wigan, with all 4 goals coming in the opening 27 minutes. Madueke, Martinelli, an own goal from Hunt and a lovely chip from Jesus put Arsenal through to the 5th round. In the Premier League, Wolves have struggled to say the very least. The Wanderers have only picked up 9 points from 26 games, and in those 26 games, conceded 48 and only scored 16 times. Unsurprisingly, Wolves have the worst home record in the division, only picking up 5 points at the Molineux from a possible 39. On the other hand, Mikel Arteta’s men have enjoyed a sensational campaign thus far in every competition. The North London outfit sit 4 points clear at the top of the Premier League, finished 1st in the Champions League group phase, recently qualified for the League Cup Final, where they will face Manchester City, and comfortably progressed through to the 5th round of the FA Cup. The Gunners have been solid away from home in the Premier League, picking up 25 points from a possible 39, which is the best record of any side in the division thus far. Wolfe on Wolves’ win against Grimsby: “We’re very happy. We obviously knew it was not going to be pretty, and we would not be able to play the football we want to play, so it was just a battle about doing the basics in football the best. We did better in the second half, we suffered quite a bit in the first half, but second half we were much better and I think we made the best of it. “Progressing is all it was about today. We knew that it wasn’t going to be a game like the last one in the FA Cup against Shrewsbury. We knew it was going to be tough and that we’d have to fight very hard, and I’m happy that we stood up to it.” On Arsenal: “It’s an important, and big challenge. They [Arsenal] are first in the table, but we made it very difficult for them a couple of weeks ago, and I believe we can do that again.” Mikel Arteta on Eze: “Eberechi Eze was really positive, that’s what we want. He’s already playing a big role, he’s played a lot of games for us and he will continue to. Those players need those moments. It’s good for the mood, the confidence.” On Norgaard’s performance vs Wigan: “Very pleased and not surprised. The way he looks after himself and every teammate, and how he handles the role, is just exceptional. I’m not surprised by what he’s done today.”
Clarke ready for Scotland talks as World Cup preparations gather pace
Steve Clarke will hold talks regarding his future with the Scottish FA in March. Speaking on Sky Sports, Clarke advised he had been “really busy” with Scottish FA CEO Ian Maxwell, as Scotland prepare for their first world cup apperance since 1998 in America. “Hopefully, we will do it by March, and hopefully we’ll have a little discussion on those matters. For me at the minute, it’s just about making sure the preparation is right, and everyone’s ready to go to the World Cup. The autumn can take care of itself. The 62-year-old led the National Team to back-to-back Euros before qualifying for the world stage after a historic 4-2 victory over Denmark. The manager was quizzed about a possible domestic return, stating, “It depends on which club! The Scotland job has been great for me; it will be coming up to seven years in the summer. Three qualifications and a really good bunch of players. “We’ve grown well and learned how to get to tournaments. I’ve enjoyed it as much as you can enjoy any managerial job these days, as there’s a lot of media attention now, and you see managers getting sacked left, right and centre. “So for me, it’s just about enjoying this moment, seeing what happens. If a decent job came up and I was available, and I hadn’t signed a contract with the SFA, you never know.” Clarke will announce his squad for friendlies against Japan and Côte d’Ivoire in the coming weeks as excitement builds for the Tartan Army.
After that statement win against Hearts – It’s Rangers’ league to lose now! – Scott Bradley
The pressure was on Rangers going into the massive showdown against Hearts on Sunday. It was a MUST win game for Danny Rohl’s men and they rose to the occasion and got an important three points against the league leaders. The Light Blues showed an incredible amount of fight, desire and grit to comeback not once – but twice to beat Derek McInnes’ side 4-2. 51,092 fans turned up for the box office fixture, which was a record of the modern era, and the highest attended since John Greig’s testimonial match back in 1978. The stadium was rocking from start to finish with a real sense of belief amongst the Gers faithful that they could go on and become champions. Rohl’s celebrations after Youssef Chermiti bagged his hat-trick were truly a sight to behold as the German head coach ran down the touchline bursting with pride and said after the game ‘it was the first since I’ve been here at that Ibrox was like Ibrox.’ Chermiti was the star of the day as he dominated the Jam Tarts’ defence and responded brilliantly after a disappointing display in front of goal against Motherwell. The spotlight has been on the striker after the Ibrox club spent a staggering £8 million on him, but credit where credit is due – that’s another big game where he has delivered – he’s quite the enigma! Rohl’s impact since his appointment back in October has been nothing short of remarkable and has picked up a total of 46 points. The Jambos are still top of the league by two points and deserve a lot of credit for the unbelievable season they’ve had but they’ll no doubt be feeling the pressure now with the Gers breathing down their necks. Celtic have picked up form after Martin O’Neill’s return to the Parkhead club for the third time and are grinding out results but not in convincing fashion, which is a cause for concern. There’s turmoil off the field for the Hoops as the relationship between the fans and board is beyond toxic and is showing no signs of improving anytime soon. The Celts play away from home to Stuttgart in the Europa League then three days later have a mouth watering Old Firm derby at Ibrox, which could send the Hoops faithful into meltdown if they fall to their arch-rivals. Out of the three teams challenging for the title, it’s the Govan club that are in the best position as the harmony, and positive atmosphere couldn’t be more higher. Regardless of what happens this season, it’s been one for the ages and a great advert for Scottish football. Danny Rohl will never need to buy a drink in Glasgow ever again if he wins the club’s 56th league title. This is Rangers’ league to lose.
