Burnley v Arsenal
The FA Youth Cup Sponsored by E.ON
Third Round Proper 
7pm, Friday 11 December
The Fraser Eagle Stadium, Accrington Stanley FC
Click here for fixtures

Last Sunday’s FA Cup Third Round draw paired Burnley with Arsenal in a game that saw the Championship side put on a good display against Arsene Wenger's Gunners, only to finish up on the end of a 2-0 scoreline at Turf Moor.

Less than a week later and the two clubs are going head-to-head again, this time in The FA Youth Cup, as they battle for the right to take on holders Liverpool in the Fouth Round.

The teams were due to meet in early December initially, but a sodden pitch in Lancashire meant the game was postponed and delayed until now, but having seen how the Clarets senior team acquitted themselves against the Premiership leaders, the club's youngsters are hoping to follow in their footsteps.

Burnley have been riding relatively high in the Youth Alliance North West Conference so far this season and go into the game on the back of a 4-0 win over near neighbours Accrington Stanley last weekend, so they are more than ready to welcome Steve Bould’s Gunners to the north-west.

"As soon as the draw was announced, the lads were buzzing and despite the delay, I still think it will be a night to savour,” revealed Overson, who was a renowned defender during his career with the likes of Burnley, Birmingham City and Stoke City.

"It is an absolute dream fixture for the lads. When you become a footballer you want to test yourself against the best teams and Arsenal are exactly that.”

Overson knows that Burnley will have their work cut out, with most of the Arsenal team having already picked up international honours in their fledgling careers, and that's just the English players.

The likes of Thomas Cruise and Jack Wilshire with the U17s and Emmanuel Frimpong, Jason Banton, Sam Byles, Oliver Nicholas and Chuks Aneke with the U16s have all been involved with the England teams this season and could feature on Friday, so Burnley will be well versed in what they may face.

"We have tried to do our homework and I have spoken to a few people from other academies who tell me something I expected; that Arsenal are a very good side,” explained Overson.

"They mirror the first team and they are technically good, everything you would expect from a top Premiership Academy team.

"However, I would like to concentrate on our lads because at the end of the day, this will be about how we play and not Arsenal.

"I would rather concentrate on the names we have and what we can produce and I am quite confident that if we go into the game doing our jobs properly, then Arsenal are beatable.”

Both teams have a rich vein of history in the competition, with Arsenal having lifted it six times, most recently in 2001 whilst Burnley were successful in 1968 and enjoyed a run to the Fifth Round in 2005 when they lost out to the eventual winners.

"I remember us playing Liverpool in a Fifth Round tie two years ago,” recalled Overson.

“We lost 3-0, but for an hour in that game, you wondered who was the Premiership team and who wasn't.

"I thought we did excellently in that game and we are not frightened of anybody we come up against.

"They are at Arsenal and you don't go there unless you are a top player. We respect that, but that is the only respect they are going to get.”

And with all of the Clarets squad having seen their seniors  perform so admirably last weekend, they will certainly be keen to repeat that on Friday.