Good afternoon and welcome to our live blog of Arsenal vs Liverpool in the FA Cup. Beyond question this is the tie of the round, and a chance for two well-liked, brilliant managers to make a step towards some silverware that both could perhaps do with, if Man City do again start to fire 100% in the League. Is the FA Cup a distraction from the real business, or is it a major prize in itself? One senses that City’s dominance of the League, perhaps, sharpens focus on the FA Cup for the chasing pack…

Kick off is at 4.30pm and the match is on BBC1, we will have team news at about half three.

When asked if the Football Association should consider pulling the plug on replays, Arteta, whose side will also contest a rejigged Champions League next season if they finish in the top four, said: “I think so. We will see what happens because with the new format of the Champions League, there will be more games (to play) so I don’t know how we are going to fit them in.

“The (mini) break will be minimal and we have plans for both scenarios. We want to win the game and we will try to win the game, but that (cancelling replays) has to be considered.”

With just one win from their last five outings, Arsenal have it all to do this afternoon against the in-form Reds.

None of Arsenal’s frontline have managed to break into double figures for the season so far with Bukayo Saka leading the way on nine.

“What they (the forwards) did last year was exceptional and we knew that to maintain those numbers would be extremely difficult because it was a one-off,” added Arteta.

“Not just for us, a one-off in the league. We know that we need all the resources and all those kinds of goals to maintain the level that we want in the league.

“When it comes to those spaces, the timing and the definition of the action (in front of goal) that becomes trickier to coach and certainly to replicate as an action in the game.

“It’s very tricky but it’s something that we have to improve, especially in the way we have not transformed recent chances into goals.”