Portsmouth v Arsenal Live Commentary & Result, 02/03/2020, FA Cup

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Next up for Arsenal is a Premier League meeting with West Ham at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, while Portsmouth return to League One action with a trip to Peterborough United the same day.

Arsenal are through to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win over Portsmouth at Fratton Park. Sokratis volleyed the visitors in front just before half-time and Nketiah added a second five minutes into the second half. It was plain sailing for Arteta's men from that point on as they returned to winning ways.

90' + 3' FULL-TIME: PORTSMOUTH 0-2 ARSENAL

A. Maitland-Niles

R. Nelson

90' + 1' Nelson, who has put in a good shift down the right today, is replaced by Maitland-Niles for the closing seconds.

90' Three minutes have been added on at the end of the match at Fratton Park.

89' BLOCK! The visitors are going through the motions now as we fast approach full-time. Ceballos creates some space for himself 20 yards from goal, only to shoot straight into a Portsmouth player.

G. Xhaka

J. Willock

87' Xhaka is brought on in place of Willock to help Arsenal over the line.

86' WAYWARD! Nelson's low cross from the right is aimed towards nobody in particular and Bass gets down to gather the ball. Up the other end, Cannon skews a shot off target from 15 yards.

85' Williams' cross is too close to Martinez, who has a routine catch to make. Still, that was some positive play from Williams to get the ball into the box.

83' A Portsmouth goal would make things interesting, but the home team have offered little in the second half to suggest they have a goal in them. Their unbeaten home run appears to be coming to an end.

81' Willock does well to get away from one player down the Portsmouth left but Seddon gets across to help out his team-mate, albeit at the expense of a corner.

79' Eddie Nketiah has scored eight goals from 16 shots on target in all competitions this season for Leeds United and Arsenal combined.

78' GOOD STOP! Saka sends Williams one way and then the other, before firing in a decent shot that Bass helps over the crossbar.

76' Arteta's men are under no pressure whatsoever as we approach the final 10 minutes of the match. Portsmouth appear to have changed formation but it has not really made any difference to the way the game is panning out.

A. Cannon

G. Evans

74' Evans is replaced by Cannon in the third and final of Portsmouth's changes, assuming the game does not go to extra-time.

73' RARE SAVE! Bass sprays the ball down the left to Curtis, who cuts inside and tests Martinez. It is a routine stop for the Arsenal keeper, but a save nonetheless.

71' Portsmouth have offered very little in this second half, unfortunately, meaning a safer passage through to round six for Arsenal than looked likely in the opening half an hour or so.

70' Martinelli swoops down to flick on a near-post corner, sending the ball into the stand behind the goal.

69' Portsmouth give the ball away just inside their own half and Nelson charges through the middle. He reaches the edge of the box and gets a shot away that deflects behind.

R. Curtis

M. Harness

67' Curtis replaces Harness as Jackett makes a double substitution.

J. Marquis

E. Harrison

67' Harrison is off and Marquis on in his place upfront in the first of Portsmouth's changes.

66' Arsenal are knocking the ball around with some confidence. Portsmouth have zero energy, but it looks as though Jackett is ready to make a double change.

64' Portsmouth have gone off the boil massively in the second half, no longer able to press their opponents high up the pitch. Arsenal will want a third goal just to make sure of their place in the last eight.

62' Arsenal forward Martinelli takes his time making his way to the side of the pitch. It looks as though he will be okay to continue after that blow to the ribs.

61' Martinelli appears to have taken an elbow to the ribs from McCrorie. The young forward stays on the ground and the Arsenal physios are on the field.

59' Arsenal are playing some nice stuff now. Portsmouth are struggling to get their foot on the ball, but home manager Jackett is holding off from making a change for the time being.

57' Eddie Nketiah has scored in three of his last four starts for Arsenal. As for opening goalscorer Sokratis, he has now scored with all three of his shots on target for the London side this season.

55' Arsenal's movement is a lot better in the second half compared to the first. Their attacking players are now linking up a lot more and making runs in behind. Portsmouth need to hang on in there and hope for a goal against the run of play.

53' Jackett will be disappointed that his side are two goals down - it does not really reflect events on the field. Opposite number Arteta will be hoping for a straightforward passage through now that his side have a two-goal cushion.

E. Nketiah

Goal

51' GOOOOAAAALLLL!!!!! PORTSMOUTH 0-2 ARSENAL!!! Nelson gets away from Seddon down the right and sends a cross into a dangerous zone. Nketiah profits from a favourable bounce and squeezes the ball past Bass from pretty much underneath the crossbar.

50' SAVE! Williams gets away from Ceballos with ease but fails to connect properly with his shot, allowing Martinez to make a simple save.

49' Portsmouth win a corner of their own as McCrorie's cross is deflected behind. The set-piece is sent towards the front post and it is an Arsenal head that gets to it first.

47' The visitors win a couple of corners inside the opening minute of the second half, both of which are cleared at the front post.

46' RESTART! Arsenal get us back up and running at Fratton Park, where neither manager made any changes at the interval.

Portsmouth were arguably the better side in the opening 45 minutes, but they failed to test Martinez with any of their eight shots. Arsenal did not fare much better in terms of chances created, though they did find a breakthrough goal right at the end of the half. Arteta will still want to see more from his side and he could well turn to one of Lacazette or Pepe at the break.

Arsenal lead Portsmouth 1-0 at the interval thanks to Sokratis' first FA Cup goal a minute or so before the half-time whistle sounded. The defender guided a volley past Bass after being picked out by Nelson - the only real piece of quality in a first half devoid of any action in front of goal.

45' + 6' HALF-TIME: PORTSMOUTH 0-1 ARSENAL

R. Nelson

Assist

45' + 4' Nelson was left in all sorts of space out wide and he did well to pick out Sokratis, who stayed up after the initial corner was half-cleared.

S. Papastathopoulos

Goal

45' + 4' GOOOOOAAAAALLLL!!!! PORTSMOUTH 0-1 ARSENAL!!! From what will likely be the final meaningful kick of the first half, Sokratis guides Nelson's right-sided cross past Bass with a quality first-time finish.

45' + 3' David Luiz fires the free-kick straight into the Portsmouth wall. Talk about an anti-climax!

45' + 2' Ceballos is clipped by Close just outside the box. It is a clear foul, one that Close should be booked for.

45' + 1' Five minutes have been added on at the end of the first half due to that earlier injury to Torreira.

45' Arsenal have played a little better over the last five minutes. They are enjoying a prolonged spell on the ball, but Arteta will know this possession counts for little unless his side can create chances.

43' All eight of Portsmouth's shots so far have either been off target or blocked. Arsenal have tested home keeper Bass just once.

41' David Luiz plays a reverse pass into the feet of Nketiah, who snatches at the shot. That is a let-off for Portsmouth.

C. McGeehan

Yellow Card

39' Portsmouth midfielder McGeehan is booked after catching Willock with a late challenge.

38' Nketiah plays the ball inside to Ceballos, who opens up his body and attempts to curl a shot on goal. Like many of the other attempts so far today, it is blocked before it can reach its intended target.

36' A free-kick into the area is only half-cleared by Arsenal and Evans fires a half-volley back towards goal, but the shot is well off target.

M. Guendouzi

Yellow Card

35' Guendouzi is shown the game's first yellow card, seemingly for something he said to referee Mike Dean after being asked to retake a free-kick.

34' Poor from Martinelli. The ball is played down the line in his direction but he allows it to run away from him and out of play for a goal-kick. Arteta will not be happy with this first-half display.

33' Portsmouth are looking the side more likely to open the scoring. They are moving the ball far quicker than their opponents and are getting shots away, albeit without really testing Martinez yet.

31' Harness is again left in a bit of space on the edge of the box. He decides to slip in Evans to his left and the midfielder's curler is blocked.

30' CHANCE! Nelson's cutback at the end of an impressive run is a tad behind Martinelli, who is unable to adjust his body in time and sends a header high over the bar from close range.

28' WIDE! A quickly taken free-kick catches out the visitors. Seddon is slipped in down the left and swings in a good cross that Evans guides wide with his head. He should have been hitting the target.

27' Arsenal are continuing to play far too safe, almost unwilling to take any risks in fear of getting caught out. Harness has another pop from 20 yards, with this latest effort being blocked inside the box.

26' Harness shifts the ball onto his right boot and tries to curl one into the far corner. The shot takes a slight touch off Mari but Martinez watches it sail wide.

24' SHOT! Arsenal's players are far too deep at the moment. They hit Portsmouth on the counter and Saka's low angled drive is easily stopped by Bass in the Portsmouth goal.

22' Martinelli chases down a long ball and is left one-on-one with McCrorie for the first time today. He gets the better of the Portsmouth right-back, but his cutback towards Nketiah is blocked behind for a corner.

20' The visitors are desperately attempting to grab a foothold in the game. They have had 68 per cent of the ball but have yet to manage a shot of any sort. Portsmouth have done well to keep the likes of Martinelli, Nelson and Nketiah quiet.

18' Arsenal have progressed from all three of their previous FA Cup ties against Portsmouth, with the most recent such match coming in the quarter-finals in 2003-04 (a 5-1 win at Fratton Park).

Dani Ceballos

L. Torreira

16' Ceballos is brought on in place of the injured Torreira, who could be facing a spell on the sidelines.

15' The stretcher has now been brought onto the field - Torreira is in a lot of pain. The Arsenal players are asking referee Mike Dean why he did not book Bolton for the challenge, but the Portsmouth player won the ball first.

14' Torreira has stayed down following that challenge from Bolton. The physios are on the field.

13' Bolton lunges in on Torreira and the Arsenal midfielder is left in a little pain. Bolton did quite clearly get some of the ball first, though, so that goes down as a strong but fair challenge.

11' Mari gets his head to the ball before Harrison can convert. This has been an excellent start from the League One hosts.

10' Arsenal's back four are struggling in these early stages. Harness gets past Sokratis with ease and David Luiz is coming out second best in his duel with Harrison.

8' BLOCK! Portsmouth look to get at their opponents as Harrison carries the ball past David Luiz. He has a go from range and the ball deflects behind for a corner off Mari, which Arsenal just about deal with.

6' Arsenal get forward for the first time today. Willock has the ball at his feet down the right but his cross towards Martinelli has too much on it.

4' Harrison gets his head to the ball at the back post and sends it looping back into the six-yard box. Martinez flaps at it but Arsenal are able to clear their lines.

3' The hosts are pressing their opponents high up the pitch. Arsenal have already been forced into an early error, but can Portsmouth sustain this approach for the full 90 minutes?

1' KICK-OFF! Third-tier side Portsmouth, aiming to pull off a huge upset against the FA Cup's most successful side, get us up and running!

The teams are coming out onto the pitch at Fratton Park, with kick-off just moments away.

Portsmouth have not beaten Arsenal in any competition since a 5-4 league victory in March 1958, drawing eight and losing 13 of their 21 meetings since then.

Arteta has made nine alterations to Arsenal's starting line-up on the back of the extra-time defeat to Olympiacos four days ago. January signing Mari is handed his debut alongside David Luiz, who is one of two players to retain his place in the side. Saka is the only other survivor from last Thursday, meaning starts for the likes of Martinez, Guendouzi and Nketiah. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is not included in the squad.

Portsmouth have made six changes to their starting line-up on the back of Friday's 3-0 league win over Rochdale. Evans returns from injury to captain the side, while Harrison, Harness, Close, Seddon and Bolton also come in. Naylor, Marquis, Curtis, Cannon and Raggett drop to the bench as Jackett rotates his side, but Lee Brown misses out entirely.

Subs: Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Granit Xhaka, Bernd Leno, Rob Holding, Dani Ceballos, Alexandre Lacazette, Nicolas Pepe.

ARSENAL XI (4-2-3-1): Emiliano Martinez; Sokratis, David Luiz (c), Pablo Mari, Bukayo Saka; Matteo Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira; Reiss Nelson, Joe Willock, Gabriel Martinelli; Eddie Nketiah.

Subs: John Marquis, Craig MacGillivray, Ronan Curtis, Tom Naylor, Sean Raggett, Andrew Cannon, Jack Whatmough.

PORTSMOUTH XI (4-2-3-1): Alex Bass; Ross McCrorie, James Bolton, Christian Burgess, Steve Seddon; Cameron McGeehan, Ben Close; Ryan Williams, Gareth Evans (c), Marcus Harness; Ellis Harrison.

Portsmouth have already come through four rounds to make it to this stage and are aiming to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 2009-10. Kenny Jackett's side are third in League One after winning back-to-back games and are unbeaten in 19 matches on home soil, winning 16 of those games.

Arsenal's positive run of form came to a shuddering halt last Thursday as they were dumped out of the Europa League by Olympiacos. Mikel Arteta's men, who overcame Leeds United and Bournemouth in the last two rounds in this competition, must now respond if they are to prevent their season from completely crumbling in the space of a week.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the FA Cup fifth-round tie between Portsmouth and Arsenal at Fratton Park.

Portsmouth v Arsenal Live Commentary, 02/03/2020

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