Soccer English League Cup quarter-finals: West Brom 0 Arsenal 2Where Manchester United and Newcastle faltered, Arsenal's kids bound on. Progress may have been tinged with good fortune, and delayed as the officials dropped like flies, but Highbury's collection of bright young things are League Cup semi-finalists this morning.
It was another occasion to savour for Arsene Wenger. The First Division leaders proved awkward opponents, their own threat checked by some implausible misses in front of goal, but Arsenal survived.
Add to that the occasional oversight from the officials, two of whom, in the referee Ray Messias and his assistant Trevor Massey, suffered calf strains, and the locals could feel hard done by.
If Gary Megson had been wary that the visitors' weakened line-up might induce a sense of anti-climax, a day of frenzied transfer activity provided a timely pep-up.
Geoff Horsfield has all but completed a £1 million move here from Wigan, and Megson has also joined Norwich in agreeing an initial fee of £750,000 to rise by £250,000 upon promotion for the Manchester City striker Darren Huckerby.
Aware of recruits to come, the home side's rugged urgency initially threatened to unsettle the Premiership leaders, with Graham Stack pawing away Neil Clement's fizzing free-kick and later tipping Rob Hulse's overhead kick wide of his post.
The young goalkeeper was then helpless as Clement clipped the bar, and horrified to see Martin Keown clatter Andy Johnson, but to the anguished disbelief of the home fans, the challenge was ignored.
Yet, while Hulse scuffed incomprehensively wide from the edge of the six-yard box and James O'Connor had a legitimate goal disallowed, the finesse was all Arsenal's.
Where the Londoners had included seven teenagers in the 5-1 spanking of Wolves in the previous round, there were only a trio here combined with a sprinkling of youngsters who have recently entered their 20s to scuttle alongside the handful of seniors.
As the juniors buzzed energetically, a veteran emerged from the playground squeals to force Arsenal ahead.
Ronnie Wallwork lost possession in midfield with Lauren's cross deflecting kindly over the muddle at the near post for Nwankwo Kanu to thump a header straight at Russell Hoult and then poke in the rebound with the goalkeeper floundering in the mud.
Hoult never recovered his poise. Having sprawled to block another low drive from the Nigerian and watched his team-mates' increasingly frenetic pressure yield no reward, Hoult panicked, misplaced a pass and presented the loose ball to Jeremie Aliadiere. The 20-year-old gleefully wriggled wide and speared into the empty net.
That undermined what momentum Albion had gathered at the other end.
After a prolonged half-time interval, delayed by a calf injury to the assistant referee Massey, Arsenal's defence creaked alarmingly, though they were spared punishment by their opponents' profligacy.
The deficit was still one when Clement's pass from inside his half veered away from the error-prone Stathis Tavlaridis for Hulse, through on goal, to strike Stack's shoulder with his shot and see the loose ball trickle behind. When substitute Lee Hughes, played onside by Keown and with the goal at his mercy, thrashed his shot horribly over and then Scott Dobie hit the bar, Albion's best chance had gone. All that was left was gnashing frustration.
WEST BROM: Hoult, Gregan, Gaardsoe, Volmer (Gilchrist 65), Haas, O'Connor (Sakiri 71), Wallwork, Johnson (Hughes 39), Clement, Hulse, Dobie. Subs Not Used: Murphy, James Chambers.
ARSENAL: Stack, Lauren, Keown, Tavlaridis, Clichy, Wiltord, Parlour, Edu, Bentley (Thomas 81), Aliadiere (Fabregas Soler 73), Kanu. Subs Not Used: Shaaban, Papadopulos, Simek. Booked: Tavlaridis. Goals: Kanu 25, Aliadiere 57
Referee: M Messias (N Yorkshire).
