AFC Wimbledon boss Neal Ardley reckons Liverpool at the CRRS was not the plum FA Cup tie he was hoping for, but it is a very close second.

From a purely financial point of view, Ardley wanted an away trip to Arsenal, but he admitted that Liverpool at home was the glamour tie the club deserved.

It brings the two sides together in the competition for the first time since Dons’ famous 1988 win at Wembley.

And although Ardley was ensconced at an U21s game on Monday night, it was not long before the requests for tickets starting flying in.

“I caught the draw at half-time and then spent the next 45 minutes, concentrating on the game,” he said.

“When I got back into my car, I had 27 messages from people congratulating us and wishing us good luck.

“There were people I have not heard from for years getting in touch asking about tickets.”

He added: “Arsenal would have been the ideal draw in terms of a financial boost to the club. The last thing we wanted was an away trip to another League Two side.

“When Arsenal came out of the hat first, I thought ‘That’s that’ and then when Liverpool came out, all I could think was how great it is for the club.”

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Dons forced their way into the hat for Monday’s night draw thanks to Sean Rigg’s winner at Wycombe Wanderers on Sunday afternoon.

Afterwards he hailed his side’s hard work in the run up to the clash, and had his fingers crossed a special tie would be the reward.

He said: “The lads deserve this game, and there’s a real buzz about the place.

“We’ve had good times and bad times, and it is no secret that we’ve stuttered in the league.

“But we reached the quarter-final of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy, which we’ve never done before, and we’ve reached the third of the FA Cup, which we’ve never done before.”

He added: “As a manager I can look back on these achievements as a real positive.”

Dons return to League Two action this weekend at York City, with Ardley facing no new injury concerns.