Arsenal under-18s head coach Adam Birchall was delighted with our team spirit and determination to beat Fulham 2-1 in the FA Youth Cup on Friday night.
Our young Gunners made the perfect start to the weekend as goals from Andre Harriman-Annous & Max Dowman put us 2-0 up less than half an hour into the game.
Fulham got a goal back before the break, but resolute defending and sheer determination saw us book our place in the quarter-finals, where weâll host either Manchester United or Chelsea.
On the performanceâŚ
âReally proud of them, I said before the game it was an opportunity they earned from the last round, and what I saw (tonight) was young people pulling together and showing real maturity to manage a game.
âI think the only bit that made it a bit more tricky was conceding I think one error we probably made defensively tonight in our game plan and they punished us, which made it a bit more tricky, but generally really, really pleased with the lads, Iâm very happy for them.â
On the importance of holding onto a one-goal leadâŚ
âWe see our first team, and our first team leads the way with that. Think about when we were at the Etihad, we lost a player and the spirit, the togetherness, the hunger to keep the clean sheet, theyâre role models to us all.
âIt was important tonight that we found a way to control the game without the ball and force them into errors when we could and counter.
âI thought a few times we couldâve countered better but there were a few times when we played some really nice football.â
On facing Manchester United or Chelsea at Emirates Stadium in the next roundâŚ
âYeah theyâre so excited, so itâll be the weekend to sort of digest this for them, then important on Monday that we donât jump ahead to that and we get back on the development wagon.
âWe start thinking about that so that weâre in a better place when that game (in the cup) comes, it doesnât stop there. But thereâs a really good vibe in the changing room as Iâm sure you can imagine!â
On how important this competition is for the playersâ developmentâŚ
âItâs really important, I think because of the prestige the Youth Cup has, I think it just adds that little bit of weight and pressure. Thatâs already there when they represent Arsenal but they feel knockout competition.
âWhat Iâve been really impressed with in the lads is theyâve not had it easy through the run, but Iâve been impressed with how theyâve stepped up and bonded really in the moments that matter.
âThatâs also a big part of development, not carrying that burden on your own, learning how to do it together and Iâm seeing that develop from this run so hopefully they get an understanding of what a team needs.â
Copyright 2025 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.