This weekend in England, the next round of the FA Cup is taking place with teams from lower divisions trying to maybe spring a surprise on the sides in the upper leagues. We’ll be concentrating on teams where Nigerian players and those of Nigerian descent play.
In the first match of the day, Bournemouth hosted neighbours Brighton at the Vitality Stadium. Jordon Ibe was in the starting line-up for the Cherries, while Leon Balogun was back in defence for the Seagulls. The recently signed Dominic Solanke won’t be available for Bournemouth until February.
The Seagulls were the first to strike, scoring two quick goals in the 31st and 34th minute. The first one was scored by Anthony Knockaert while the second was the work of Yves Bissouma. This was the score at the break.
In the second half, Bournemouth were more adventurous and got a goal back in the 55th minute through Marc Pugh. But, soon after, Brighton confirmed the win with a third goal scored by Florin Andone. They are through to the next round.
Arsenal travelled to Bloomfield Road to face Blackpool, the League One side. They were clear favourites and it showed. Joe Willock was in the starting eleven for the Gunners and he took his chance scoring the first two goals, in the 11th and the 37th minute.
Alex Iwobi – Player of Arsenal – Vlad1988 / Shutterstock.com
Alex Iwobi, who was also in the starting line-up, was involved in the second goal and then scored the third one, in the second half, after beating the Blackpool goalkeeper Mark Howard in the 82nd minute to seal the win for Arsenal. Bukayo Saka, after making his debut in the last match, came in off the bench in the 86th minute to replace Iwobi.
Goodison Park was the venue for the match between Everton and the League Two leaders Lincoln City. Ademola Lookman played from the start and scored the first goal for Everton in the 12th minute, after not scoring a goal for more than a year. Bernard quickly added a second for Everton two minutes later.
Lincoln City did manage to pull a goal back in the 28th minute through Michael Bostwick, going into the break only a goal down. The second half didn’t bring much excitement and no goals, taking Everton through to the next round of the FA Cup with a 2:1 victory.
The Championship team Bristol City welcomed Huddersfield at Ashton Gate, looking for a Premiership scalp. And in the end, they got it, with a goal by Josh Brownhill in the 72nd minute. Huddersfield are now nine games without a win. Philip Billing was on the bench this time and didn’t play.