Kieran Gibbs: 'Boro are a good team, we knew we had to be strong from the start'

Arsenal full-back Kieran Gibbs was wary of the threats posed by Boro ahead of yesterday's cup clash but felt the Gunners dominated from the off and deserved to ease into the next round.

It was a perfectly weighted cross from the England international that allowed Olivier Giroud to fire the Premier League side into an early lead at the Emirates, a lead they never looked like relinquishing.

Gibbs felt it was vital for Arsenal to get off to a good start against a side confident of causing another upset after knocking out the Premier League champions in the last round.

But Boro never really got going in the capital and struggled to cope with the brilliance of Arsenal's forward players.

"Theyre still a very good team," said Gibbs after the Gunners booked their spot in the last eight.

"They're well organised with good balance and we knew that we had to be strong from the start and I felt we dominated possession.

Arsenal goalscorer Olivier Giroud with team-mate Kieran Gibbs after the win over Boro

"We've got players who could make the difference and it was a good team performance."

While Chelsea and Manchester City were dumped out in the fourth round of this year's FA Cup, Blackburn, Stoke and Sunderland joined the growing list of Premier League clubs who suffered defeat against lower league opposition this weekend.

"We know what this competition is like," said Gibbs.

"You've seen teams that can cause upsets and we can't take these teams for granted. We're hungry to retain our trophy and we've got a good squad - we're happy to continue our run."

Meanwhile, matchwinner Olivier Giroud admitted he would have loved to have completed his hat-trick against Boro, but was just relieved to ensure the FA Cup holders are in the hat for tonight's draw.

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"I have been waiting for a hat-trick for over two years now but the boss decided to take me off," he told the club's website.

"I'm pleased we won and I had two fantastic assists from Alexis and Gibbs. We kept another clean sheet and we carry on in our good run and we want to keep that going."