Arsenal travel to Preston North End on Wednesday night in Carabao Cup action as Mikel Arteta looks to progress to the quarter-finals of the domestic competition with fixtures coming thick and fast.
Just one league separates the Premier League Gunners and Championship Lilywhites. Paul Heckingbottom's side sit 26th in the second tier and welcome Arsenal to Deepdale on the back of a five-game unbeaten run.
It's a rare meeting between the two clubs, who last played each other in FA Cup action over seven years ago. That clash in January 2017 saw Arsene Wenger's side emerge 2-1 victors but the favourites did have to work for that result.
Callum Robinson opened the scoring for Preston after just seven minutes following an Arsenal defensive error. The forward nearly added a second too but saw an effort disallowed.
The Gunners bounced back in the second half with an long distance equaliser from midfielder Aaron Ramsey before Olivier Giroud bag his fourth goal in four games with just a minute left on the clock. Arsenal would then go on to lift the FA Cup trophy that year, beating Chelsea 2-1 in the final.
Speaking after the game, Wenger said: "Someone reminded me yesterday that I have never been out in the third round in 21 years, but tonight, in the first half, it was close. Preston played with enthusiasm and quality in the first half, they were quicker than us all over.
"Maybe subconsciously we thought that it would be easier and at half-time we knew we could have been out. I believe that we have a togetherness and fighting spirit and that is why we have these comebacks. It was a typical cup tie with English enthusiasm and the crowd cheering on their team."
Mikel Arteta will hope for a more plain sailing affair on Wednesday night when Arsenal return to Preston North End. LondonWorld takes a nostalgic look at where the starting XI from that 2017 cup tie are now.
1. GK - David Ospina
Second-choice shot stopper David Ospina was given a start in the cup game against Preston. The 36-year-old now plays for Atletico Nacional in his home country of Colombia having enjoyed stints at Napoli and Al Nassr after leaving Arsenal. | Arsenal FC via Getty Images
2. LB - Nacho Monreal
The full-back announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 36 in 2022, after three years at Real Sociedad. He won the FA Cup three times with Arsenal, in 2014, 2015 and 2017. | AFP via Getty Images
3. CB - Gabriel Paulista
The only Arsenal player to be shown a yellow card in that game, the Brazilian is now 33 years old and still playing football. He joined Besiktas this summer on a free transfer, signing a contract until 2027. | Middle East Images/AFP via Getty
4. CB - Shkodran Mustafi
The defender would go on to miss the FA Cup final win that season due to illness. He retired in June 2024 to become assistant coach of the German under-17 national team. | Getty Images