Arsenal had a weekend to forget while Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner all kicked off their Australian Open campaign.
If you are an Arsenal fan, you likely got the blues after last weekend. Meanwhile, if you are a tennis lover, you are likely in a great mood as the first grand slam of the year is fully underway.
That was the story of the last weekend as things began to heat up ahead of another exciting year of sports. Football (both international and American) was again in the news as the NFL Wild Card games took place in North America while the quest for domestic league titles continued in Europe.
The German Bundesliga and Eredivisie all resumed following the winter break. Meanwhile, the Divisional playoff rounds are almost set as the Commanders, Texans and Ravens all booked their spot.
However, while these are news in their own right, the creme de la creme of the weekend happened in North London and down under.
Going into this weekend’s clash against Manchester United in the FA Cup third round, Arsenal knew there was no margin for error if they were to win a trophy this season. The Gunners had not won a trophy since they won the FA Cup in the 2019/2020 season.
But this season presented them with a chance to finally land one. However, it looks like Mikel Arteta’s men are heading towards another trophyless season after they crashed out of the FA Cup on Sunday, losing to 10-man Manchester United on penalties.
The Gunners knew they could not afford to lose, having lost 2-0 at home to Newcastle in the first leg of their EFL Cup clash.
With the team also six points behind Liverpool in the league, having played a game more, the FA Cup was Arsenal’s major realistic chance of winning something this season.
However, unless they perform a miracle against Newcastle or do something they have never done before in the Champions League, it looks like the Gunners will go another season trophyless.
Despite a chunk of the second half and extra time with a man advantage, Arsenal could not beat United. The Gunners did dominate possession in the first half, but they fell behind seven minutes after the break, courtesy of Bruno Fernandes’ strike.
However, the Gunners were given a lifeline when Diogo Dalot was sent off for a second bookable offence. Arsenal made the advantage count quickly as Gabriel equalised two minutes later.
It looked like Arsenal would go on to win after the equaliser, but they could not find the winner despite coming close many times. With no further goals in regular time, the match went to extra time.
Despite having a man advantage, the Gunners could still not find a way through after 30 minutes, with the match going to penalties. The penalty shootout turned out to be Arsenal’s nightmare as United prevailed after Kai Haverts missed the decisive spot kick.
The first grand slam of the year is underway in Australia, with Djokovic, Sinner and Alcaraz all in action. All three progressed safely to round two, although Djokovic overcame a little scare.
The ten-time Australian Open Champion, seeking a record-breaking 25th major, dropped the first set to Nishesh Basavareddy 4-6 before going on to win the last three sets for a 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-2 win.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz began his bid to complete a career Grand Slam with an imperfect but entertaining 6-1 7-5 6-1 win over Kazakhstan's Alexander Shevchenko.
As for Sinner, he was was pushed to the brink in the opening two sets against Nicolas Jarry before pulling away late for a 7-6(2), 7-6(5), 6-1 victory in Rod Laver Arena.
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