Burnley 1-5 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

Steve Bould’s Arsenal youngsters – inspired by a hat-trick from England U17 ace Henri Lansbury – emulated the success of their senior counterparts, as they romped to a 5-1 win over Burney in The FA Youth Cup on Friday evening.

The north London club’s first team had defeated the Championship side 2-0 last Sunday at Turf Moor in the Third Round Proper of The FA Cup, but on Friday Burnley’s youngsters had threatened to upset the applecart by achieving a dream start – scoring through captain Adam Kay’s penalty – inside three minutes.

Kay’s spot-kick was Burnley’s only high point, however, as the Arsenal youngsters, watched by a healthy 826-strong crowd at Accrington Stanley's Fraser Eagle Stadium, soon showed their class.

The Gunners were level after 13 minutes, when Burnley’s young ‘keeper, Daniel MacDonald dropped a bouncing ball at the feet of the oncoming Lansbury. A horrified MacDonald could only watch as the midfielder stroked the ball into an empty net.

Burnley’s wheels fell off completely when another defensive error seven minutes later allowed Lansbury to cross from the right-hand-side. The ball found Mark Randall, who finished adroitly with a curling shot from 18 yards.

Four minutes before the interval, Arsenal put the tie beyond their hosts, as Kieran Gibbs scored from an acute angle at the second attempt following an initial superb block by Burnley’s Chris Lynch.

After the half-time oranges, the highly-rated Lansbury made it 4-1, firing home a fizzing volley at the far post from Randall’s raking, left-wing cross.

And the midfielder, who, like Randall, was on the bench at Turf Moor five days earlier, completed his hat-trick 17 minutes from time with a deflected drive that left MacDonald helpless.

Arsenal's win in Lancashire sets them up now with a Fourth Round trip to face holders Liverpool.