At the start of the second half, before Arsenal could react, Leeds United took the initiative and launched a series of attacks.
This aggressive push left Arsenal a bit disorganized, forcing them to retreat and avoid further trouble.
But Arteta's strategy remained unchanged: push forward and fight for possession.
The former professional, a product of Barcelona's youth academy, had been deeply influenced by the club's footballing philosophy, both as a player and now as a coach. When he decided to enter coaching, he even interned at Manchester City under Guardiola.
Therefore, he understood clearly that if Arsenal couldn't press forward and put enough pressure on Leeds United, then they were finished.
Arsenal's fragile defense simply couldn't withstand Leeds United's relentless attacks.
Leeds United's center forward was Haaland, and their left winger Rashford. Both were physically strong, powerful forwards with excellent footwork.
Haaland, in particular, was practically a cheat code.
To make matters worse, the two center-backs marking him had already been complaining non-stop at halftime.
Tonight, Arsenal's starting central defenders were Rob Holding on the left and Mustafi on the right.
But both had obvious weaknesses.
Mustafi wasn't tall, only 1.84 meters. While he had decent pace and agility, he was short and lacked strength in physical duels, putting him at a disadvantage against tall, powerful strikers.
Holding, on the other hand, stood at 1.89 meters, five centimeters taller than Mustafi.
Don't underestimate those five centimeters. Holding had solid physical strength, especially in aerial duels, and he was good in one-on-one defensive situations. Plus, he had a knack for distributing the ball, which made him one of the more promising defenders in Arsenal's backline.
However, his weakness lay in his lack of speed and agility, which put him at a disadvantage against quick attackers.
In addition, both lacked positional awareness and often became overconfident, leaving their positions when attempting to intercept.
Leeds United's players clearly came prepared. Whether it was Haaland or Rashford, they used different strategies depending on who they were up against.
This was a huge problem.
Trying to overpower Mustafi or outrun Holding was simply cruel.
But what made it worse was that both Haaland and Rashford had imposing physicality and explosive speed. It was outrageous.
How could Arsenal's center-backs be expected to stop that?
After some adjustments, Rashford had been focusing on strength training for some time. He had put on 5 kilograms of muscle, mainly in his lower body, with a bit in his upper body as well. This made his physique more solid and less prone to injury.
What was even more remarkable was that his body still maintained excellent flexibility.
This was the main reason behind his recent resurgence in form.
In this match, Rashford and Haaland caused all kinds of trouble for Arsenal's defense. Their performance left the two central defenders and right-back Chambers in utter despair.
And what made things even more desperate was the presence of a well-hidden deep-lying playmaker constantly feeding them passes.
...
Not long ago, Enzo Fernandez's agent, Martín Guastadisegno, passed him a message.
Manchester United's potential buyer, Jim Ratcliffe, had made a bold declaration. If he succeeded in taking over the club, he would go all out to sign Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes, who had been in exceptional form for Leeds United this season.
Just how good had Bruno been?
He had scored 20 goals and provided 18 assists in the Premier League this season. An absolutely outstanding contribution.
Of course, many of those came from set pieces and penalties, but they were still impressive.
Other England internationals like Rashford, Sancho, and Grealish were also on the radar.
The British billionaire was determined to rebuild Manchester United in the most traditional fashion and as quickly as possible.
This was an opportunity.
Guastadisegno told Enzo, "You should seize every chance to play and show Leeds United that you have the talent and potential to replace Bruno Fernandes. Only then will they give you more playing time and invest more in your development."
"Bruno is already 25. Based on Leeds United's usual approach, they might choose to cash in while his value is high. But that only works if there's someone ready to take over his position."
Enzo understood that his agent wanted him to become that player.
In fact, he had been working toward that goal the entire time.
Competition at Leeds United was fierce.
Putting everything else aside, 17-year-olds Camavinga and Pedri were both exceptional. They had trained and played alongside Enzo in the second team and occasionally with the first team. Both were incredibly talented.
Not to mention an even younger homegrown prodigy, Bellingham, who hadn't even turned 17 yet.
After joining Leeds United, Enzo experienced the club's professionalism and its strong emphasis on youth development, but he also felt the intense pressure from the competition.
This was exactly why he improved so quickly.
Joining Leeds United had significantly accelerated his growth.
Many things he had previously tried to figure out on his own, he now learned systematically and professionally at Leeds United. This gave him a clearer understanding of the role he should play on the pitch.
Just like in the 53rd minute of this match.
Three Arsenal players had pressed forward to swarm Leeds United's defense.
They were especially targeting Gvardiol.
It seemed Arsenal had identified the Croatian as a weak link in Leeds United's backline.
Alphonso Davies was stronger going forward than defending, and Gvardiol's passing was prone to error, so the Gunners focused their pressing on that side.
At the critical moment, Jon Amené dropped deep to receive the ball.
Gvardiol passed it to Militao, who then found Jon Amené.
The French defensive midfielder moved into space to receive, successfully relieving Arsenal's pressure.
This kind of off-the-ball movement was something Leeds United highly valued.
After seeing Jon Amené drop deep, Enzo immediately followed suit, pulling back past the halfway line and drifting toward the left side of the center circle.
At the same time, he kept scanning his surroundings, especially where the defenders were.
He noticed that Arsenal's two holding midfielders didn't advance with the front three. They were clearly wary of Leeds United's counter-attack threat.
That left the area around Enzo relatively open.
The Argentine immediately raised his hand to signal for the ball and called out, "Jon Amené."
The French midfielder calmly controlled the ball, turned around, and sent a pass forward before Willock could close him down.
As the ball arrived, Enzo stopped, turned his back to the center circle, and reached out with his right foot to trap it.
The control and turn were smooth and precise, allowing him to not only stop the ball but also rotate and face forward.
Guendouzi quickly rushed in to close him down.
But Enzo had already anticipated it. He had been tracking Guendouzi's positioning and was aware of his teammates' runs behind. So as soon as he turned, he quickly delivered a lofted pass over the top with his right foot.
The ball sailed through the air and dropped behind Arsenal's defense.
Rashford immediately accelerated, darting forward between Chambers and Mustafi, right on the edge of the penalty area. He brought the ball down and dribbled into the box.
After entering the area, Rashford suddenly stopped, flicked the ball inside with his right foot, cut past Mustafi, and unleashed a curling shot with his right foot.
The whole sequence was fluid and precise, giving Arsenal's defense no chance to react.
Goalkeeper Leno dived, but he couldn't reach it.
The ball flew past him but struck the right post and bounced back.
Just when everyone was about to sigh in disappointment, thinking Leeds United had missed a golden chance, a white shirt burst into the frame and smashed the rebound into Arsenal's net.
"Haaland!"
"Hat trick!"
The young Norwegian charged off the pitch, running wildly, unleashing all his excitement.
The entire Leeds United crowd jumped to their feet, chanting his name over and over.
"Hat trick!"
"Enzo Fernandez's long ball was sublime, Rashford's run and control into the box were excellent, and his stop, cut inside, and shot were just as brilliant."
"Leeds United's counter-attack once again showcased both individual brilliance and flawless team coordination."
"But in the end, it was Haaland who completed the move and bagged the goal."
"Haaland should definitely thank Rashford for this one."
Sure enough, during the celebration on the sidelines, Haaland raised Rashford's hand, acknowledging his contribution and sharing the moment with him in front of the entire stadium.
Rashford had tried too hard to place his shot perfectly, which led to it hitting the post. But that rebound gave Haaland another chance.
Holding couldn't react in time to stop Haaland and could only watch helplessly as the Norwegian completed his hat trick.
The entire stadium was rocking.
3-0!
The outcome was clear!
"We must admit, Leeds United's young players are full of surprises and continue to impress."
"Whether it's Enzo Fernandez, Rashford, Haaland, or Sancho and Valverde on the right, this young Leeds United team is absolutely phenomenal."
"Now leading 3-0, we can confidently say the match is settled."
"Arsenal's biggest concern now is how to steady themselves, avoid further embarrassment, and prevent an even larger defeat. As for the FA Cup, it looks destined for Leeds United's youngsters."
"And we have every reason to believe that after this FA Cup triumph, Leeds United's young talents will bring us even more surprises and even more exciting football."
(To be continued.)