Our match report from the Emirates has landed, so I’ll leave you with that. Thanks for your company, goodnight.

The thing that will please United most about the wins at Spurs and Arsenal are that Solskjaer used bespoke attacking tactics that were spot on. So far he has been almost immaculate in three vital areas: man-management, tactics and interviews.

90+6 min Rashford shoots high over the bar from 30 yards.

90+4 min That third goal has flattened Arsenal’s morale.

90+3 min That was almost a fourth. Martial slid a nice pass down the left for Shaw, whose low cross flashed just in front of Rashford.

90+2 min In other Arsenal-related news, Monaco have dumped their new boyfriend for their old boyfriend.

90+1 min There will be 10 minutes of added time. Guendouzi is booked for a foul on Pogba.

90 min Arsenal have had 64 per cent possession. This has been like those Arsenal v Man Utd matches from around 2008-10, when Arsenal had all the ball and United shredded them on the counter-attack.

89 min Arsenal shouldn’t give up on this - there are still at least 10 minutes remaining.

88 min “All those tributes to Cech recently made me think he’d retired,” says Niall Mullen. “Turns out he did.”

You’re a hard man, Mullen.

87 min The icing on the cake for Manchester United: Phil Jones comes onto the pitch. He replaces the overheated Jesse Lingard, who scored an excellent second goal. It seems Lingard was hit by a coin from the crowd, which was why he briefly lost it.

86 min Lingard doesn’t receive a second yellow card. It’s hard to be suyre what he did or didn’t do as we haven’t seen any replays, though it was clear at the time that his noggin had briefly gone. At one stage he was having a full and frank exchange of views with some Arsenal fans, though that in itself is not a yellow-card offence.

86 min It started when Kolasinac and Rashford put their heads against each other, and both have been booked. Lingard got involved after that, and VAR Man is looking at some replays.

85 min It’s all kicking off! This is more like it. Lingard is involved and might be in trouble here, as he’s already been booked.

Pogba marches forward from deep inside his own half, uses Rashfjord by not using him and hits a low shot from 25 yards that Cech can only parry straight to Martial. He finishes calmly, sweeping it past the recovering Cech at the near post. That was another ruthless counter-attack, and I am going to eat some vegan humble pie.

81 min Arsenal contine to dominate the match, although Romero hasn’t had that much to do. United have been a bit wishy-washy on the counter-attack since half-time; they’ll regret that if Arsenal equalise.

80 min Pogba is robbed on the edge of the D by Lacazette, whose subsequent shot is blocked by Shaw. Lacazette’s defensive workrate has been outstanding.

79 min There should be at least 10 minutes of added time, mainly because of the Koscielny injury. Cech makes a good save from Rashford, who was offside anyway.

78 min Arsenal don’t deserve to lose this game, although United fans might point out the travesty of the 2005 FA Cup final in return.

76 min Lingard is booked for dissent.

75 min “Just got in from an evening setting up kit and noisily (and messily) sound-checking in a village hall, ready to play a set at some friends’ wedding tomorrow,” says Matt Dony. “There was no mobile signal, so I’m just catching up. So, England are facing a comedy score in the West Indies, Solskjaer’s glorious start looks like it might continue (which means the United fans in work are going to be unbearable), and I’m ‘feasting’ on a vegan pizza. It tastes exactly as good as you imagine it does. I’m sure Fridays used to be more fun...”

Threshers is still open.

73 min: Chance for Arsenal! Lacazette picks up a loose ball on the edge of the United area, moves around Shaw and hits a stinging shot that is beaten away at the near post by Romero.

72 min “Do you think,” begins Niall Mullen, “that on a Pacific Island somewhere there is a Mourinho loyalist on manoeuvres through the jungle still refusing to believe his emperor has been defeated?”

I thought he’d just taken a job in Qatar?

71 min A double change for United: Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial replace their highly effective stand-ins, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez. Lukaku made two and Sanchez scored the first.

70 min “Hello Rob,” says Kári Tulinius. “I hope Özil has a good game. Not only because I’m an Arsenal fan, but because I’ve enjoyed watching him play since he broke through at the 2010 World Cup. I’m generally happy with Emery, but his decision to keep a regular source of joy away from the field has started to become enervating. Hopefully now once the transfer window closes Unai will come to his senses.”

69 min Torreira swings the free-kick beyond the far post, where the unmarked Aubameyang cushions a volley into the six-yard area. It ricochets off a couple of defenders and falls kindly for Matic to clear.

68 min Ashley Young is booked for deliberate handball just outside the area on the Arsenal left.

67 min Aubameyang comes infield from the left and finds Ramsey, who slashes high and wide from 22 yards.

66 min Pogba leads another United break, running 60 yards before shaping to shoot and playing a disguised through pass to Lukaku. It was slightly overhit and ran through to Cech.

64 min Koscielny is being walked off the field, so Arsenal have lost both their centre-halves. After an eight-minute delay, Arsenal make a double change: Mesut Ozil for Alex Iwobi and Matteo Guendouzi for Koscielny. Granit Xhaka has gone to centre-back.

62 min Koscielny is still receiving treatment on the field, though he is sitting up now. Mesut Ozil is getting ready to come on.

60 min Koscielny is still down and being treated. He looks groggy and sore, and I don’t think he’ll be continuing.

57 min Koscielny is down after a challenge with Lukaku. It was Lukaku who alerted the referee and asked him to stop play, in fact. That was a nasty collision, with Lukaku accidentally backheeling Koscielny on the side of the the face. Koscielny has a cut by his left ear and, presumably a very sore cheekbone.

56 min Aaron Ramsey has had a storming game tonight.

55 min The free-kick is slightly to the right of centre. Lukaku will take it... and boot it into the crowd.

54 min Pogba leads a very dangerous United break, three against two, before Koscielny fouls him 25 yards from goal. He is booked.

53 min “Hi Rob, just watched the highlights of the game from 1988,” says Rob Carey. “Without trying to sound like an old fart, we didn’t need a second commentator talking us through an action replay in excruciating detail. And talking of replays, One was enough; I just saw two slow motion replays of Sokratis lying on the floor.”

That game wouldn’t have been televised live, but I do take your point.

52 min Pogba goes down inside the area after a challenge from Xhaka just outside it. He was sure he was fouled; Craig Pawson disagreed.

48 min Aubameyang runs into Young in the area and falls over. Craig Pawson isn’t interested, and nor, it seems, is VAR Man. But Arsenal have started the second half superbly. United will definitely need a third goal to win this, and possibly a seventh.

46 min: Great save from Romero! Aubameyang’s cross from the right hit the underlapping Maitland-Niles, who reacted smartly to lift a cross of his own towards the near post. Ramsey steered a close-range header towardas goal, and Romero showed brilliant reactions to change direction, stretch to his left and touch the ball onto the top of the bar.

46 min Peep peep! Arsenal begin the second half.

Half-time reading

Half-time chit chat

“Remember when Arsenal couldn’t seem to lose a game this season no matter how hard they tried?” says Niall Mullen. “This really shows the value of perseverance.”

“Lukaku has played this role for both Belgium and Everton quite a bit...” says Rohan Mammen. “This tactical switch is hardly unusual or new. Mourinho likes to play one way and frankly he’s not the greatest target man in the traditional sense...”

Well, I didn’t say it was new, only that it was unusual, and I would hold to that. He’s probably played that position in five per cent of games throughout his career, at most.

45+3 min Ramsey, who has been brilliant, lifts a dangerous cross to the far post that eventually comes to Aubameyang. His route to goal is blocked so he tries to find Koscielny, and Young is alert to the danger. Moments later, Mustafi heads a few yards wide from 12 yards. Romero had it covered.

45+2 min Aubameyang breaks into space down the right and wins a corner. United are hanging on at the moment.

45+1 min Maitland-Niles dupes Pogba on the right wing and slides the ball back to Lacazette, whose first-time shot from 10 yards is too close to Romero.

45 min Three minutes of added time.

44 min The Arsenal left side has been a problem for United, just as it was when Cole, Pires and Henry were driving Gary Neville to distraction. Ashley Young is sometimes having to deal with three men - Iwobi, Ramsey and Sokratis.

Iwobi played a short pass down the left to Ramsey, who surged into the area and stabbed the ball across the six-yard box. The stretching Lacazette couldn’t get enough on the ball to score but his touch diverted it to Aubameyang, who swept it into an open net from six yards.

40 min Ramsey’s long-range shot deflects behind for a corner.

40 min “Is it me or is Romero sporting comically over-sized gloves?” says Nick Smith. “What are the rules on this sort of thing?”

How do you mean?

39 min Sanchez plays the ball back to Lingard, who takes a touch and splashes a half-volley into orbit from 20 yards.

37 min After the success of the 4-V-V formation at Spurs, this has so far been another tactical triumph for Ole Solskjaer, the second goal in particular.

36 min Romelu Lukaku can be a frustrating bugger but he has played a huge part in both goals in this unusual role as a right-sided forward.

35 min Arsenal will feel they’ve been mugged, because United had barely threatened before the first goal.

That was a classic counter-attacking goal. Shaw won the ball on the edge of the area and set off on a long diagonal run towards the halfway line before playing the ball down the right wing for Lukaku. He timed his run perfectly to stay onside and then looked up before squaring the ball to Lingard, who calmly took a touch and slid the ball carefully past Cech.

Alexis Sanchez scores on his return to Arsenal. Lukaku, just outside the area, put him through on goal with a very cute pass, and Sanchez danced around Cech before lifting the ball into the net from an acute angle. That’s an excellent goal. The disguised pass from Lukaku was quite superb.

29 min The lively Iwobi wins a corner off Young. It’s played deliberately to the unmarked Kolasinac on the edge of the area, but Mustafi is penalised for a block on Young.

28 min After some neat passing from Arsenal on the edge of the area, Lacazette crosses too close to Romero.

24 min Xhaka feeds a sharp pass into Lacazette on the edge of the area. His superb touch releases Iwobi on the left side of the box, and he shoots straight at Romero from a tight angle. Iwobi should probably have crossed to Aubameyang, who was lurking in the six-yard box. At the other end, Lingard’s superb cross from the right bounces tantalisingly across the face of goal, just evading both Lukaka and Pogba in the six-yard box.

23 min Breaking news: this isn’t great.

20 min Sokratis tries to come back on, realises his ankle has gone and signals to the bench that he needs to come off. United kick the ball out of play so that he can be replaced by Shkodran Mustafi. The poor bloke is almost in tears.

19 min Sokratis moves gingerly to the touchline to receive more treatment. Arsenal will continue with 10 men for the time being.

18 min Sokratis lands awkwardly on his left ankle after challenging Lingard, and this doesn’t look good for Arsenal.

17 min Romelu Lukaku isn’t a fan of sprinting, is he?

14 min It hasn’t been the electric start to the game that we hoped for, though Arsenal - and Pogba and Sanchez for United - are showing good intent.

13 min Pogba moves forward imperiously from midfield and is sent flying in the D by Torreira. I think he got something on the ball first, and Craig Pawson waves play on.

13 min “Hi Rob,” says Lizz Poulter. “I agree with Mark Childs - on paper Man Utd shouldn’t win this tie. Solskjaer is going to lose a game sooner or later, and this is one could easily be it, so it’s a perfect time to change around the lineup, give some other players a run out, save De Gea for a home replay and penalties if necessary... and what a boost if we scrape the win! I’m so happy with Ole Gunnar in charge - I love my team again - it IS my team again. Let’s go!”

11 min Sanchez plays an eye-of-the-needle return pass into the area for Pogba, and Cech is quick off his line to smother Pogba’s attempted stab across the face of goal.

9 min “At what stage in a player’s career can one be reasonably confident about their ability - or is there no such fixed quality?” says Charles Antaki. “The Arsenal team over the last few years has looked like a rather cruel sports psychologist’s field experiment. Coquelin looked absolutely superb for one season. Flamini came back and looked fine after having been rubbish. Szczesny was often excellent and equally often not, and then did very well at Roma, until he didn’t. And then take your pick from the current crop. Perhaps Ozil was recruited precisely because the experiment needed to move to the final, publication-in-Nature phase.”

Yes, I used to think building a team was like that Ikea scene in the film Fight Club – “whatever happens, I’ve got that sofa problem sorted” – but it never works out like that, especially if you burn your own condo to the ground.

7 min Iwobi finds the overlapping Kolasinac, whose driven cross is met by Aubameyang at the near post. His flicked first-time shot is well blocked by Lindelof. Arsenal look really sharp, United less so.

4 min Arsenal have started well. Iwobi moves down the left and crosses low to Lacazette, whose touch is too heavy and sends the ball out of play. He might have been better hitting that first time from just inside the area.

3 min Arsenal have started in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Iwobi wide left and Lacazette roaming from the right. United are playing with the same 4-V-V formation they used at Spurs: Lingard is the nominal centre-forward, with Lukaku on the right and Sanchez on the left.

2 min Sanchez harasses Maitland-Niles into conceding an early corner. Shaw’s outswinger is headed away by Koscielny.

1 min Peep peep! United, in their blue away strip, kick off from right to left. Arsenal are in red and white.

After a minute’s applause for Emiliano Sala and Doug Ibbotson, Manchester United will get the match under way.

The players are in the tunnel, all with their gamefaces on. They’ll see you out there.

“I kind of like what Ole has done tonight,” says Mark Childs. “Romero has to play at some point, and he has played in a World Cup final so he’s not bad. Bailly is always an improvement on Jones. And he’s kept a strong team, giving a motivated Lukaku and Sanchez the opportunity to play well. I wonder where he could have got the idea for playing the two back-up strikers against Arsenal in an FA Cup tie? Didn’t turn out so badly in the ’99 replay…”

Ha, that’s a good point. Although they don’t have Juventus in the semi-final next week. I would definitely have played Rashford and probably Martial.

Unai Emery speaks! “We need to start with the first XI but on the bench we have players who can help us. We have been very consistent at home. We know today is very difficult. We want to produce our best performance and show our quality and commitment.”

An email!

“Rob, totally agree that this has been the best rivalry in English football, at least in my lifetime,” says Andrew McLaughlin. “As an Arsenal fan, it was simultaneously heartbreaking and amazing to see Ryan Giggs pick up an errant pass by Vieira (of all people) and blow through the famed Arsenal backline in that 1999 FA Cup semi-final. United were steered by destiny that season. I can’t think of any other explanation for the way all the fine margins tilted their way, even in the Champions League.

“And while I can recall several times when Arsenal delivered a great shot to United’s body, like Marc Overmars at Old Trafford in 97-98 or Thierry Henry’s amazing turn and volley at Highbury in 2000-01, I still feel like Arsenal should have done more to disrupt and disturb United’s dominance. United are more a bogey team for Arsenal than the other way around, and now, with United flying on an emotional high, something I don’t detect in the ether at Arsenal, I think today could be United’s day.”

Yes, Arsenal could never quite shake United off, even when they were obviously superior in the early 2000s. It must irk them that they never retained the title. They should probably have won it in 2002-03, which would have given them three in a row from 2001-04, but then United will feel they should have won in 1997-98. Both teams played the hunter and the hunted at different times.

Ah, man, that rivalry was as good as football will ever get.

Remember When (part 731212432354) The last time Arsenal played at home to United in the FA Cup was that wonderfully hateful fifth-round match in 1988, when Nigel Winterburn took exception to Brian McClair’s existence.

Pre-match reading