FA Cup third-round wrap: The things you might have missed

Olivier Giroud goal vs Preston

(Selected matches below  all other results listed underneath) 

Preston 1-2 Arsenal

OPTA FACT

Arsenal have lost just 1 of their last 37 FA Cup ties against lower-league opposition (0-1 vs Blackburn, February 2013)

Olivier Giroud rescued Arsenal for the second time this week with a late winner as the Gunners downed Preston late on at Deepdale. The Frenchman – captaining Arsene Wenger's team after his midweek heroics against Bournemouth – ensured his team avoided a replay by finishing off in the 89th minute after a fine backheel from Lucas Perez.

Arsenal, though, rode their luck in a terrible first half that should have left them dead and buried. They conceded to Callum Robinson's seventh-minute effort and could easily have shipped a handful more before the break, but Preston didn't take advantage of their brilliant start and saw a dream win snatched away by second-half strikes from Aaron Ramsey and Giroud. 

Arsenal achieved their win without Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, neither of whom were in the squad, and welcomed back forward Danny Welbeck who made his long-awaited comeback from injury as an 83rd-minute substitute. 

Goals: Robinson 7' • Ramsey 46', Giroud 89' 

Man United 4-0 Reading

OPTA FACT

Man United have won eight consecutive matches in all competitions for the first time since September 2009

Wayne Rooney equalled Sir Bobby Charlton's all-time Manchester United scoring record as the Reds romped to a comfortable 4-0 win over Reading at Old Trafford. The England captain joined Charlton on 249 goals with an improvised opener against the Championship outfit, who gave their manager Jaap Stam little to be encouraged by after being outclassed from start to finish. 

United were two goals up inside a blistering opening 15 minutes. First, Rooney kneed one in to finish a flowing move, before Anthony Martial strolled through Reading's defence to add a second. The visitors improved as the half wore on but barely troubled Sergio Romero, and United could have been much further ahead – indeed, they fired off 18 attempts before the break, their highest figure so far under Jose Mourinho.

But they made their dominance count after the break, and Marcus Rashford finally scored his first goal since September 24 after collecting Michael Carrick's defence-busting ball and finishing coolly past Ali Al-Habsi. Within four minutes he had a second in comical fashion, after ex-Wigan keeper Al-Habsi – who only signed a new contract yesterday – missed a passback and allowed the young England striker to nip in for United's fourth. 

Goals: Rooney 7', Martial 15', Rashford 75', 79'

Birmingham 1-1 Newcastle

OPTA FACT

Lukas Jutkiewicz has scored 4 of Birmingham’s 5 goals under Gianfranco Zola

Daryl Murphy and Lukas Jutkiewicz swapped first-half goals as Birmingham held Championship high-fliers Newcastle to a draw at St Andrew's. These teams' previous FA Cup meeting came back in January 2007, when the Blues crushed Newcastle 5-1 in a third-round replay at St James' Park – and Gianfranco Zola will be hoping history repeats itself when his team heads back to the north-east for another bite at the cherry. 

Goals: Jutkiewicz 42' • Murphy 5'

Brentford 5-1 Eastleigh

OPTA FACT

Brentford are the first side to score 5 goals in the first half of an FA Cup tie since Carlisle vs Tipton in November 2010

Brentford ensured a seamless passage to Round Four with an emphatic trouncing of National League side Eastleigh at Griffin Park. Pre-match chatter focused on the absence of star striker Scott Hogan through injury – the subject of reported interest from West Ham and Newcastle – but the Bees were 5-1 up by half-time after Yoann Barbet's early penalty was followed up by a brace from 19-year-old defender Tom Field, plus additional goals via Lasse Vibe and Romaine Sawyers. 

Goals: Barbet 9', Field 17', 38', Vibe 23', Sawyers 45+2'

Everton 1-2 Leicester

OPTA FACT

There were just 7 minutes and 48 seconds between Everton taking the lead and Leicester going 2-1 up at Goodison Park

Substitute Ahmed Musa inspired Leicester to a come-from-behind victory against Everton at Goodison Park. The Nigerian speedster – thus far disappointing since joining from CSKA Moscow in the summer – had been a 35th-minute substitute for the injured Leo Ulloa, and earned Claudio Ranieri's side safe passage through to the fourth round with a brace on Merseyside. Romelu Lukaku had put the Toffees ahead on 63 minutes, but Musa's quickfire double ensured Toffees celebrations were short-lived.

Leicester, meanwhile, handed a debut to Nigerian new boy Wilfred Ndidi – a £17m arrival from Genk earlier this week – and the 20-year-old impressed in his first outing at the heart of midfield. 

Goals: Lukaku 63' • Musa 66', 71' 

Hull 2-0 Swansea

Marco Silva tasted victory in his first game as Hull manager – but just 6,608 fans saw the Tigers' 2-0 victory at the KCOM Stadium, as part of fresh protests against the club's ownership. Portuguese boss Silva replaced Mike Phelan in the dugout earlier this week, but the former Sporting chief faces an almighty task to keep his new club afloat in the Premier League.

His opposite number Paul Clement was also overseeing his first game in charge of a new club, after watching most of Swansea's midweek win over Crystal Palace from the stands, but the former Bayern Munich assistant could only watch on as Abel Hernandez and Josh Tymon condemned the Welsh side to defeat. Hernandez was making his first Hull appearance since October 25 after a muscle tear.  

Goals: Hernandez 78', Tymon 90+3'

Ipswich 2-2 Lincoln

OPTA FACT

Theo Robinson has scored 4 goals in his last 2 FA Cup games for Lincoln, both of them braces (against Oldham and Ipswich)

Ipswich twice came from behind to draw against National League side Lincoln – but it means they now haven't won an FA Cup game in their last 11 attempts (vs Blackpool in 2009/10). Pundits had picked this game out as a potential upset long before kick-off, and it almost proved so as Theo Robinbson's brace put the Imps 2-1 ahead. But Ipswich had their own two-goal star in Tom Lawrence, who ensured the Championship side didn't endure yet another miserable afternoon in the nation's favourite cup competition. 

Goals: Lawrence 12', 86' • Robinson 7', 65' 

Millwall 3-0 Bournemouth

OPTA FACT

Bournemouth are the first PL team to lose an away FA Cup match by three goals to a side from the third tier or below

League One Millwall pulled off the day's biggest upset with a deserved 3-0 victory over Bournemouth at The Den. In a week where their CEO Steve Kavanagh admitted that the Lions may have to relocate if Lewisham Council sells the land outside their ground, the south-east Londoners gave their fans reason for cheer with an impressive victory over Premier League opposition.

One-time Premier League star Steve Morison gave them a half-time lead, which was doubled shortly after half-time by Shaun Cummings. Northern Ireland international Shane Ferguson made it an afternoon to remember with a third in stoppage time. 

Goals: Morison 26', Cummings 49', Ferguson 90+3'

Norwich 2-2 Southampton

Goals from Virgil van Dijk and Maya Yoshida ensured centre-backs were still top billing at Southampton this week – but they weren't enough to see the Saints safely through against Norwich, who grabbed a late leveller through Steven Naismith. The south coast club confirmed on Thursday that Jose Fonte had handed in a transfer request at St Mary's, but their tough week didn't get much better after they twice lost leads to ensure a south-coast replay. 

The in-demand Van Dijk struck with seven minutes of the first half remaining by converting Dusan Tadic's cross with a thumping right-foot volley, but the hosts levelled shortly after the interval through Steven Whittaker's penalty. Yoshida grabbed a second for Claude Puel's team midway through the second half, but Naismith had the final say with a late, late equaliser in Norfolk. 

Goals: Whittaker '52, Naismith 90+2' • Van Dijk 38', Yoshida 67'  

West Brom 1-2 Derby

OPTA FACT

Matt Phillips has had a hand in 12 goals in his last 11 games for West Brom in all competitions (5 goals, 7 assists)

Derby came from behind to knock out Premier League West Brom at The Hawthorns, courtesy of goals from Darren Bent and Tom Ince. Matt Phillips had continued his terrific 2016/17 with a fifth goal of the season, but Bent hit back shortly after half-time (which means he's scored in nine of his last 10 FA Cup games, including each of his four for Derby) before Ince got the winner three minutes later. 

Goals: Phillips 35' • Bent 51', Ince 54'

Wycombe 2-1 Stourbridge

Stourbridge's FA Cup dreams of 2016/17 are over after a battling 2-1 defeat to Wycombe at Adams Park. The lowest-ranked side left in the competition were good value for at least a draw and cancelled out Sam Wood's 60th opener 10 minutes later, but Adebayo Akinfenwa grabbed a late winner to knock out the eight-tier side who beat League One Northampton in the previous round.

Goals: Wood 60' • Scarr 70', Akinfenwa 83'

Elsewhere...

  • Accrington Stanley 2-1 Luton
  • Barrow 0-0 Rochdale
  • Blackpool 0-0 Barnsley
  • Bolton 0-0 Crystal Palace
  • Brighton 2-0 MK Dons
  • Bristol City 0-0 Fleetwood
  • Huddersfield 4-0 Port Vale
  • QPR 1-2 Blackburn
  • Rotherham 2-3 Oxford
  • Stoke 0-2 Wolves
  • Sunderland 0-0 Burnley
  • Sutton 0-0 AFC Wimbledon
  • Watford 2-0 Burton
  • Wigan 2-0 Nottingham Forest

Other stuff from FourFourTwo

More features on FourFourTwo.com

Joe Brewin

Joe was the Deputy Editor at FourFourTwo until 2022, having risen through the FFT academy and been on the brand since 2013 in various capacities. 

By weekend and frustrating midweek night he is a Leicester City fan, and in 2020 co-wrote the autobiography of former Foxes winger Matt Piper – subsequently listed for both the Telegraph and William Hill Sports Book of the Year awards.