FA Cup fixtures today

The FA Cup third round did produce some interesting match-ups but it lacked a little of the competition’s fabled magic.

However, the fourth round has some more intriguing ties, several of which will be played this Friday under the lights.

There will be two gargantuan battles to set up the weekend, including Manchester City’s trip to eight-time winners Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea’s mouth-watering encounter with high-flying Aston Villa.

Here is your guide to all four of Friday’s FA Cup fixtures.

Sheffield Wednesday and Coventry City will lock horns for the third time since Christmas this Friday, with the Sky Blues having won both previous meetings between the Championship duo. The most recent clash came last weekend, with last season’s play-off finalists winning 2-1 at Hillsborough thanks to a brace from Ben Sheaf.

After a difficult start to the campaign, results have picked up for Wednesday since Danny Rohl’s arrival in the dugout, the Owls hammering Cardiff City 4-0 in the FA Cup third round. Coventry enjoyed a similarly emphatic result in the last round, thrashing Oxford United 6-2.

Bristol City will feel confident of another Premier League scalp this Friday, the Championship side defeating West Ham United in a replay to progress to the fourth round. Tommy Conway’s third-minute goal was the difference between the sides, earning the Robins the possibility of another upset against Nottingham Forest.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s side also needed a replay to make it to the fourth round, beating Blackpool 3-2 after extra-time thanks to a Chris Wood winner. The forward has been in fantastic form, netting again during Forest’s 3-2 defeat to Brentford in the Premier League last Saturday.

Having just secured their spot in the Carabao Cup final on Tuesday evening, hammering Championship Middlesbrough 6-1 at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea will be aiming to take another step towards FA Cup glory this Friday. In one of the round’s more challenging ties, the Blues welcome overachieving Aston Villa to west London.

The bad news for the 2022 FA Cup runners-up is they have lost their last two clashes with Unai Emery’s Villa, both of those meetings coming at Stamford Bridge. The Midlands side won at Chelsea earlier this term, Ollie Watkins’ goal punishing the ten-man Blues.

Villa continue to exceed expectations in the Premier League this season, currently sat fourth and 12 points above the Blues. Emery has a strong record in knockout football and his players will be looking to punish any Chelsea fatigue in search of a fifth round spot.

A fixture that produce drama no matter the circumstances, Tottenham will face current FA Cup holders Man City for the second time this season on Friday. Despite a raft of injuries, Spurs managed to salvage a late point at the Etihad in the previous meeting in early December, Dejan Kulusevski’s header seeing the game finish 3-3.

Man City have a notoriously poor record against Tottenham in recent times, especially on the road. In fact, Pep Guardiola’s side haven’t beaten the Lilywhites in north London since 2018, failing to score a single goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since it opened in 2019.

However, Man City are beginning to hit their stride after a slightly bumpy start to the campaign and have won four games on the trot since being crowned world champions at the end of last year.

With Kevin De Bruyne fit and already producing match-defining moments and Erling Haaland potentially available for Friday’s affair, Ange Postecoglou’s side will have their work cut out to stop the Cityzens this time round.

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