Leeds showed they are up for the FA Cup when rallying late on at Cardiff and the fourth-round draw has provided them with more incentive. The winners of this replay will visit Accrington or Boreham Wood, so we reckon the Whites should be eyeing a good run this season.
Arsenal begin their quest for a record-extending 15th FA Cup triumph by visiting Oxford and are expected to make smooth progress. The U’s are only 14th in the League One table and were beaten 2-0 at Kassam Stadium by Crystal Palace in the EFL Cup early on this season.
Leicester will take an injury-hit squad to Gillingham in the FA Cup but should surely still be too strong for the League Two basement dwellers. The Foxes lifted this trophy for the first time in 2021 and could do with a boost after three straight Premier League defeats.
Newcastle claimed the last of their six FA Cup triumphs way back in 1955 and Eddie Howe would no doubt love to end that drought this term. The Magpies start out by visiting Sheffield Wednesday in round three but may find this a tricky test against the in-form League One outfit.
In the New Year, we will witness one of the most celebrated milestones in the English football season: the third round of the FA Cup. This is the stage at which the 20 Premier League teams enter the world’s oldest national football competition.
United are not able to be picky about which trophies they win these days and will be relieved to be hosting lower-league opposition in the FA Cup fourth round. They went into the winter break on the back of two Premier League wins and can use the cup tie to get back into the swing of things.
Rafael Benitez is under pressure to quickly improve Everton’s fortunes and that should ensure they treat their FA Cup third-round tie at Hull seriously. The Toffees are languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table with just one win since late September so confidence must be low.
Patrick Vieira lifted the FA Cup four times as a player and will be keen to steer Crystal Palace into round four at the expense of Millwall. The Lions were once regarded as a team to fear on home turf by Premier League clubs but their recent record in this event is only moderate.
Manchester City have been hit by a Covid outbreak ahead of their FA Cup trip to Swindon but it is still hard to envisage the Robins pulling off a shock result. Pep Guardiola will miss the visit to The County Ground, along with at least seven first-team players.
Chelsea and Leicester will battle it out at Wembley on Saturday and we’ve asked our editors for their expert FA Cup final betting tips. Bwin is offering odds on a vast range of markets ahead of this weekend’s clash and here’s three predictions on how to cash in on the prices available.
Man Utd remain the only English team to have claimed Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League trophies in the same season, but Man City are 9/2 to land the same Treble bet. The Blues won all three major domestic competitions two years ago and will now try to also conquer Europe for the first time.
Chelsea are on a high after reaching the last eight of the Champions League and it would be a major upset if Sheffield United are the ones to end their unbeaten record under Thomas Tuchel. The Blues face an exciting end to the season due to their form since Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard.
Southampton have a welcome distraction from their poor Premier League form when they face south coast neighbours Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Saints have lost 10 of their last 12 league games but should still have too much quality for a Bournemouth team sitting outside the play-off places in the Championship.
Chelsea have already thrashed Barnsley in the EFL Cup this season so should be confident of a routine victory when they meet in the FA Cup fifth round FA Cup. Kai Havertz hit a hat-trick as the Blues cruised to a 6-0 win at Stamford Bridge in September, although both clubs have since had a change of manager.