The biggest talking points from the FA Cup fourth round
FA Cup fourth round
Both Manchester clubs breeze through to the fifth round, but Liverpool are among four Premier League sides who need to win a replay if they're to progress. There are also 11 sides outside of the top flight in the draw for the next round – including League Two Northampton Town...
Super-sub stages Shrewsbury fightback
Jason Cummings came off the bench to score twice for Shrewsbury Town and earn a 2-2 draw with runaway Premier League leaders Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp made 11 changes to his team, but after seeing a two-goal lead slip, sent on Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino to try to grab a winner. It didn’t work.
Klopp won’t manage replay
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has confirmed no first team players will take part in the fourth replay with Shrewsbury Town and he won’t be in the dugout. Instead, reserve boss Neil Critchley will take charge and it “will be the kids who play”, because the replay is scheduled in the newly introduced winter break.
Ole goes in strong
Manchester United thrashed Tranmere Rovers 6-0 to dispel any notion of an upset. It was the first time they had scored six in a game since 2011, as Harry Maguire and Diogo Dalot netted their first goals for the club, while Phil Jones got his first United strike since March 2014. A strong line-up suggested Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in no mood to entertain the idea of a slip-up.
Bilic haunts horrible Hammers
Slaven Bilic returned to West Ham for the first time as a manager since they sacked him in November 2017. A Conor Townsend goal was enough to see his West Bromwich Albion side go through at the expense of his old club – although Bilic decided not to celebrate the winner against his former employers..
Holders cruise through
Manchester City continued the defence of their FA Cup crown with a dominant 4-0 win over Fulham - who had Tim Ream sent off after just six minutes for hauling down Gabriel Jesus in the box. Ilkay Gundogan scored the resulting penalty, while Jesus netted a brace himself and Bernardo Silva added the other.
More cup frustration for Newcastle
Newcastle haven't reached the fifth round of the FA Cup since 2006 – and they will need a replay to achieve it this season following a 0-0 draw with League One Oxford United. It was the same story against Rochdale last round, and manager Steve Bruce said he was “frustrated, disappointed, upset” with the performance.
Should replays be scrapped?
There were more calls for FA Cup replays to be done away with after six draws across the fourth round weekend. Karl Robinson said scrapping replays wouldn’t be a “bad thing” after his Oxford United team drew 0-0 with Newcastle United, while Ralph Hasenhuttl and Jose Mourinho said their Southampton and Spurs sides didn’t need another game.
Southampton secure late replay
Sofiane Boufal’s 87th-minute equaliser earned Southampton a 1-1 draw with Tottenham. Danny Ings was uncharacteristically wasteful in front of goal, having scored 16 times already this season, but Boufal stepped up to lash it in after Son Heung-min had given Spurs the lead at St Mary’s.
Cup confidence for Norwich
Norwich City manager Daniel Farke believes his team’s 2-1 win against Burnley in the fourth round can help them avoid relegation from the Premier League. Norwich are currently six points from safety at the bottom of the table, but triumphed in this game through a Grant Hanley header and first Canaries goal for Josip Drmic.
Chelsea stretch unbeaten run against Hull
Following their latest 2-1 defeat, Hull City have now not beaten Chelsea in 16 attempts in all competitions in a run that stretches back to 1988. Blues boss Frank Lampard has also beaten Hull in his last six games – four as manager with Chelsea and Derby County, and twice as a player with Chelsea and Manchester City.
Leicester win final FA Cup match at Griffin Park
Brendan Rodgers made nine changes but his Leicester City team still beat Brentford 1-0 - with the Bees admittedly making nine changes themselves. It was the final FA Cup tie to be played at Griffin Park, with Brentford moving into their new Community Stadium as of next season.
Lowest ranked team in the hat
Northampton Town are the only League Two team that will be in Monday’s fifth round draw after a 0-0 draw at home to Derby County. They will now face a replay at Derby, knowing that victory at Pride Park will ensure Northampton are the lowest ranked side in the competition.
Worldie helps Blades through
Muhamed Besic scored a superb opener for Sheffield United as they won 2-0 at Millwall. Besic’s wonder strike came just seconds before manager Chris Wilder was set to substitute him, while Oliver Norwood sealed the result with a goal from the edge of the area of his own.
Away team at home
In a bizarre turn of events, the 0-0 tie between Coventry City and Birmingham City saw away team Birmingham playing at their home ground of St Andrew’s. That’s because Coventry have been using the stadium as their home this season after failing to agree a deal to play at the Ricoh Arena.
Sheffield Wednesday bounce back
Sheffield Wednesday are into the fifth round following a 2-1 win at QPR - the perfect response after being thrashed 5-0 at home by Blackburn Rovers in their previous match. Morgan Fox and Sam Winnall scored for Wednesday, with Nakhi Wells netting a late consolation for the Rs.