Portsmouth vs. Arsenal: Head-to-head record and past meetings ahead of FA Cup third-round clash

A place in the FA Cup fourth round will be the reward for the winner of Sunday's tie between Portsmouth and Arsenal at Fratton Park.

Mikel Arteta's side are sitting six points clear at the top of the Premier League after picking up a point from Thursday's goalless affair against Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium.

Meanwhile, Portsmouth have hovering just above the Championship relegation zone and have not played since being thrashed 5-0 by Bristol City on New Year's Day. 

Despite that result, Pompey will be looking to spring a surprise on Sunday, while Arsenal will view this as the first step in their bid to win a 15th FA Cup. 

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at the head-to-head record and previous meetings between the two sides.

Head-to-head record

Previous meetings: 71

Portsmouth wins: 14

Draws: 24

Arsenal wins: 33

As one of the giants of English football, it will come as no surprise to see Arsenal dominate the head-to-head record, having won 33, drawn 24 and lost just 14 of their 71 competitive meetings with Portsmouth.

In fact, the Gunners have gone 22 consecutive head-to-head matches without defeat since losing 5-4 in a top-flight clash at Fratton Park in March 1958. 

The Gunners have won each of the last five meetings between the two sides, including a 2-0 away victory in the 2019-20 FA Cup fifth round, which came courtesy of goals from Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Eddie Nketiah.

That result maintained Arsenal's exemplary record against Portsmouth in the FA Cup after previously prevailing on three separate occasions.

The Gunners won 2-0 in the first FA Cup tie between the two clubs in February 1932, before they required a replay to progress from a fourth-round tie in 1971, which saw them draw 1-1 at Fratton Park and then win 3-2 at Highbury on their way to lifting the trophy.

Another iconic cup clash took place in 2004 when Thierry Henry starred with a brace in a resounding 5-1 victory at Fratton Park, before he traded shirts with Lomana Lua Lua at the final whistle and then wore it as a sign of respect to the Portsmouth faithful who were chanting his name after being left in awe by the Frenchman's football wizardry.  

Players in the Wrong Shirt | Part 2 ?

Swapping shirts at full-time has given us the chance to see some players wearing shirts they’ve never worn before!

Thierry Henry in the Portsmouth 2003 Home

(Thread?) pic.twitter.com/4U3i2N5ou1

— Classic Football Shirts (@classicshirts) August 28, 2023

Henry later said: "I wore the Portsmouth shirt for those special fans. They were singing my name, asking me to give them a wave and all that kind of thing. I've never experienced that in my life. This was an away game and I was from the other team. They really are tremendous."

Away from the FA Cup, Arsenal cruised to two 4-1 victories when the two sides were last played in the same league in the 2009-10 Premier League campaign.

Abou Diaby grabbed a brace in the home meeting in August 2009, before Samir Nasri, Aaron Ramsey and Alex Song all got on the scoresheet just months later in the return fixture.

Henry is the second-highest scorer in this fixture, with his nine-goal tally leaving him just one behind another Arsenal legend, Cliff Bastin.

Meanwhile, Peter Harris tops Pompey's scoring charts in the fixture after scoring seven goals against the North London club. 

Previous meetings

Mar 02, 2020: Portsmouth 0-2 Arsenal (FA Cup)

Dec 30, 2009: Portsmouth 1-4 Arsenal (Premier League)

Aug 22, 2009: Arsenal 4-1 Portsmouth (Premier League)

May 02, 2009: Portsmouth 0-3 Arsenal (Premier League)

Dec 28, 2008: Arsenal 1-0 Portsmouth (Premier League)

Dec 26, 2007: Portsmouth 0-0 Arsenal (Premier League)

Sep 02, 2007: Arsenal 3-1 Portsmouth (Premier League)

May 13, 2007: Portsmouth 0-0 Arsenal (Premier League)

Dec 16, 2006: Arsenal 2-2 Portsmouth (Premier League)

Apr 12, 2006: Portsmouth 1-1 Arsenal (Premier League)

Dec 28, 2005: Arsenal 4-0 Portsmouth (Premier League)

Mar 05, 2005: Arsenal 3-0 Portsmouth (Premier League)

Dec 19, 2004: Portsmouth 0-1 Arsenal (Premier League)

May 04, 2004: Portsmouth 1-1 Arsenal (Premier League)

Mar 06, 2004: Portsmouth 1-5 Arsenal (FA Cup)

Sep 13, 2003: Arsenal 1-1 Portsmouth (Premier League)

Jan 01, 1988: Portsmouth 1-1 Arsenal (Division One)

Aug 29, 1987: Arsenal 6-0 Portsmouth (Division One)

Feb 01, 1971: Arsenal 3-2 Portsmouth (FA Cup)

Jan 23, 1971: Portsmouth 1-1 Arsenal (FA Cup)

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