FA Cup: Arsenal under pressure, Man Utd thrive as underdogs, 'cup hell' for Spurs

A Young family affair at Goodison Park

Everton vs Peterborough, Thursday, 7.45pm

It is not every day you have family members on the same football pitch. If they do, it is usually siblings – but Thursday’s game at Goodison Park pits Ashley Young against his son Tyler.

The 18-year-old joined Peterborough in the summer having come through Arsenal’s academy. He has made just one first-team appearance so far, playing in midfield.

His father is coming up for 22 years as a professional footballer and wrote on social media after December’s draw: “WOW … Dreams Might Come True #GoosebumpsMoment #YoungVsYoung.”

It would be quite the moment to see both on the pitch at the same time – and that is not where the Young connection ends in this weekend’s FA Cup action.

Ashley Young’s brother, Lewis, is the caretaker boss at Dagenham and Redbridge, who travel to Millwall for their third-round tie on Monday evening.

Whatever the results this weekend, there will be a Young representative in the FA Cup fourth round.
Charlotte Marsh

A new era at West Ham – can Potter spoil the party at Villa?

Aston Villa vs West Ham, Friday, 8pm

Julen Lopetegui’s departure from the London Stadium has been confirmed and a new era at West Ham now beckons.

Graham Potter has made his return to football after leaving Chelsea in 2023 and will be in charge for the FA Cup clash with Aston Villa in the ‘Second City’.

New manager bounce is a real thing and with the two sides also set to meet in the Premier League later in the month, getting off to a winning start could be crucial for Potter and his staff.

Villa will be celebrating the club’s 150th anniversary on the evening but the new Hammers boss, who hails from the area and represented Birmingham City in his playing days, will be hoping he can spoil that party by progressing into the fourth round.
Patrick Rowe

Slot has luxury of injury-free squad – should Liverpool rotate?

Liverpool vs Accrington, Saturday, 12.15pm

Saturday marks the first meeting between Liverpool and Accrington Stanley (in their current guise) in any competition. Accrington travel to Anfield 19th in League Two – with a whopping 86 places between them and the Premier League’s leaders in the football pyramid.

That should matter not to the fourth-tier team, because this is a rare free hit. Arne Slot has shown in recent days how reluctant he is to completely rotate his team selection – most of the usual suspects lined up to face Tottenham in the Carabao Cup in midweek – and so Accrington should relish the opportunity to play a strong Liverpool XI with zero pressure. Slot has spoken about favouring consistency to carry momentum.

A particularly busy January might necessitate a few more changes than were seen on Wednesday, though, and the expectation is for Harvey Elliott, Darwin Nunez and maybe even Federico Chiesa to get a full run out. Diogo Jota was quiet against Spurs and may well get another chance to build up his match sharpness. Mohamed Salah was slightly muted too.

Slot is blessed with a full complement of players at this crucial stage of the season – something he calls “quite special” – and keeping all in peak condition will be of fundamental importance if Liverpool are going to continue to fight effectively on all fronts.
Laura Hunter

Are Chelsea’s kids up for the cup?

Chelsea vs Morecambe, Saturday, 3pm

If there is one thing Chelsea are not short of, it is a football player. With a squad of 33 first-team players to chose from, Enzo Maresca is likely to use this vast expanse to face Morecambe.

He is likely to follow the same pattern as Chelsea’s Conference League campaign, but that does not mean there will not be goals and entertainment – quite the opposite.

Exciting teenager Marc Guiu scored six goals in six league-phase games in Europe, topping the goalscoring charts for the competition.

Academy product Josh Acheampong has also been attracting attention recently. Against Crystal Palace, Maresca called him Chelsea’s ‘best player’ – timely given the injury issues affecting the Blues’ defence.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall – a transfer target for West Ham – may also get some much-needed minutes. He has played just over an hour’s worth of Premier League football so far this season, though he has made eight appearances in the Conference League, including qualifiers.

Given Chelsea’s dip in form recently, some may even do enough to earn themselves a starting place in the Premier League. But beating Morecambe and making it to the fourth round will be the starting point.
Charlotte Marsh

Class of ’92 return to haunt rivals

Manchester City vs Salford City, Saturday, 5.45pm

When the Class of ’92 took over Salford City in March 2014, they probably did not expect to be playing their rivals and champions of England little more than 10 years later.

Four promotions in five seasons powered them into League Two in 2019 but their progress has stalled.

Manchester United legends and Salford co-owners Gary Neville, David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Phil Neville and Paul Scholes have sacked four managers in the five seasons since.

But their latest appointment, scouser Karl Robinson, has reignited their promotion hopes. The 44-year-old, former MK Dons, Charlton and Oxford manager, has Salford sat inside the automatic promotion places with seven wins in their last eight.

Manchester City have not been eliminated at this stage of the competition since 2012, when they lost 3-2 at home to Manchester United, who started Giggs and named Scholes on the bench after he came out of retirement. Their old foes are back again.
David Richardson

Can Harrogate take their chance at Leeds?

Leeds vs Harrogate, Saturday, 5.45pm

Harrogate actually train in Leeds, using the facilities of Rothwell Juniors in the south east of the city. With Leeds United’s training ground at Thorp Arch in Wetherby, it means that Elland Road is actually closer to Harrogate’s training base than the home club.

Leeds United versus Harrogate Town does not have a storied history. The clubs have never met before prior to this FA Cup third-round tie but it is certainly a derby of sorts, as shown by the reaction of Simon Weaver and his team when the draw was made.

Any chance of an upset? Well, Daniel Farke is set to rest many of his players following a hectic festive period, with Leeds’ priority very obviously winning promotion back to the Premier League. It presents a slither of an opportunity but can Harrogate take it?

The form has not been good, a run of five defeats in December even putting Weaver, who has been in charge for over 15 years, under some pressure from supporters. But they did beat Barrow at the weekend. A win over Leeds would be another matter entirely.
Adam Bate

FA Cup hell awaits Spurs at Tamworth

Tamworth vs Tottenham, Sunday, 12.30pm

Forget Galatasaray away, Tottenham will enter FA Cup hell when they visit National League side Tamworth.

A Portakabin dressing room, an artificial pitch, Tom Tonks’ long throw and an unbreakable winning spirit await Ange Postecoglou’s injury-hit squad.

Andy Peaks, the Tamworth boss since February 2022 who has led the club to back-to-back promotions, promises his side will also be “horrible and nasty and in their faces”.

Tamworth have already dumped out League One’s Huddersfield and Burton Albion with goalkeeper Jas Singh continuing his inspired form, that saw him concede just 27 goals in 44 games last season, by saving two penalties in a second-round shoot-out.

Singh said he had 65 ticket requests within 48 hours of the draw being made and a place inside the 4,963-capacity Lamb Ground has since become a controversial topic.

Tamworth came under fire for their ticket prices with a seated adult ticket costing £42, twice the usual matchday rate, as the club look to cash in on the biggest game in their 92-year history and without the chance of a replay.
David Richardson

Arsenal’s Carabao Cup loss adds FA Cup pressure

Arsenal vs Man Utd, Sunday, 3pm

The Carabao Cup looked like Arsenal’s most likely route to silverware this season. That is until the semi-final first-leg defeat to Newcastle at the Emirates Stadium. The two-goal deficit for next month’s second leg at St James’ Park puts them up against it to make the final.

Mikel Arteta accepts his Arsenal project has reached a point where trophies are necessary. Six points behind Liverpool in the Premier League and with the Champions League knockouts still to navigate, the FA Cup has now taken on added significance.

Arteta stressed after Tuesday’s game that he has not given up on the Carabao Cup. “I have full belief,” he said of the second leg. But he knows the size of the task they face at St James’ Park. An early FA Cup exit to Manchester United would take another trophy off the table.

Such an outcome would test the patience of Arsenal supporters too.

Their dissatisfaction was clear at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night, where many could be seen heading for the exits long before the final whistle sounded. Victory is needed on Sunday to revitalise their hunt for trophies. It is also needed to stave off apathy and angst.
Nick Wright

Underdog tag allows Man Utd to thrive

If the Liverpool game taught us anything, it is that this Manchester United side can compete. A trip to the Emirates is one of the toughest away days any side will have this season but so was Anfield and United rose to the occasion with a convincing display in a 2-2 draw that left many feeling Ruben Amorim’s side merited more.

Amorim was disappointed after the game, left befuddled by what he had witnessed across 90 minutes considering the dismal displays he had seen prior.

Whether it was a quickness across the ground, composure in the final third or defensive organisation, United proved Amorim’s teachings come to the fray when there is nothing to lose. Once again, United will travel to the Emirates as the underdogs and it is a role the United players seem to thrive in.

Whether they can rise to the task against some of the so-called minnows remains the question but, luckily for the playing squad, it is another ‘mismatch’ in the offing for United.
William Bitibiri

Newcastle’s squad depth tested against Bromley

Newcastle vs Bromley, Sunday, 3pm

Newcastle should be confident heading into Sunday’s game. Not only because they face League Two side Bromley and will be favourites, but the Magpies have also won their last seven games.

That includes a 2-0 win against Arsenal in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg with a team that has found its feet having at times been criticised for underperforming.

You would expect Eddie Howe to heavily rotate for the visit of the Ravens, who themselves were unbeaten in 10 games before a 4-1 defeat to Crawley last weekend. The test for Newcastle will be to maintain their performance levels while utilising their squad and safely seeing themselves into the fourth round.

It will give us an indication on Newcastle’s squad depth heading into the second half of the season, and whether they have what it takes to finally win the domestic cup silverware that has eluded them since 1955.

It will also be a very personal trip for Bromley manager Andy Woodman.

Even before the draw, he was keen on a return to St James’ Park, where he was goalkeeping coach under Alan Pardew. His son, Preston goalkeeper Freddie Woodman, also came through the club’s academy and made four first-team appearances.

As fate would have it, the draw dropped kindly for Woodman and his team, giving them the chance to knock out one of the Premier League big boys. Not an impossible task in the FA Cup.
Charlotte Marsh