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The last time Arsenal played Mansfield Town was in Highbury in January 1929. It was in the FA Cup, Harold Burston Peel and David Jack were the goalscorers in the game that we won 2-0. Ninety-seven years later, we meet again. This is the magic of the FA Cup. A League One side sitting 16th on the table and five points above relegation zone coming face to face with the side at the top of the Premier League. Nigel Clough, the 59-year-old manager on his 298th game in charge of the Stags, would like this dream run to continue and get his hands on a trophy that eluded his legendary father, Brian.

The Stags beat Championship side Sheffield United 4-3 at Bramall Lane in the third round, then travelled to Turf Moor and came from behind to beat Premier League side Burnley 2-1 in the fourth round, with captain Louis Reed scoring a stunning free-kick from 25 yards in the 80th minute to complete the comeback. They are in the FA Cup fifth round for the first time in 51 years. Having slipped to 16th in the League One table, and are only five points clear of the relegation zone, the cup provides Mansfield a welcome respite from the league. Clough himself admitted as much this week, saying his side were "not looking forward to playing Arsenal" after three consecutive defeats, before back-to-back draws offered some confidence heading into Saturday.

Luke Bolton has also picked up a calf injury in midweek, which is a blow to their options out wide. Clough's preparation has been honest about the size of the task. He says the aim is to "make it as uncomfortable as we can" for Arsenal, a side that is 59 places above them in the English football pyramid. He has spoken specifically about Arsenal's set-piece threat, acknowledging that whichever eleven Arteta puts out will be formidable at dead balls. "We can't do too much on them and we just say to the players to concentrate on ourselves. It really does focus the team. We can look at Arsenal's squad and it will frighten the life out of our lads if we start doing that," Clough told Sky Sports.

We have been here before, twice already this season. We beat Portsmouth 4-1 at Fratton Park in the third round, Martinelli scoring a hat-trick. We beat Wigan 4-0 in the fourth round, four goals in the opening 27 minutes. Both were rotated sides. The FA Cup has been a competition where we have looked, if anything, sharper than in the league, precisely because players with something to prove have been handed their chance to prove it. We have progressed from each of our last 15 FA Cup ties against sides from the third tier or below. However, the number that should concern Clough most is this one: Gabriel Jesus has been involved in 20 goals in his last 19 domestic cup appearances against teams from outside the Premier League, across spells with Manchester City and Arsenal. He has won all 19 of those matches. With Leverkusen away on March 11 followed by Everton, the Leverkusen second leg and the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City all within a fortnight, Arteta has no choice but to rotate the playing XI for Saturday. The likes of Jesus, Myles Lewis-Skellu, Ben White, Noni Madueke and Christian Norgaard are all likely to the start the game.

Our quest for quadruple remains on the table. I have been careful about using that word too freely because the fixture list over the next six weeks is bruising. But the FA Cup is a live part of that conversation. We are one win away from the quarter-final day, which will be held on April 4. The FA Cup deserves its romance, but we must ensure Mansfield’s dream run ends tomorrow at the Field Mill.