FA Cup today – your guide to Sunday’s games

For the ultimate time this season, residence benefit shall be an element within the FA Cup earlier than the competitors ticks in direction of the Wembley-bound semi-finals.

Sunday will see the ultimate three quarter-finals play out with as many as three non-Premier League groups duking it out for a spot within the ultimate 4. Get your FA Cup bingo playing cards on the prepared as David prepares his slingshot, kind books fly out of varied home windows and the competitors’s ingrained sorcery will get loads of airtime.

Here’s every part you want to find out about Sunday’s matches – none of which, after all, are straightforward games.

For the primary time in eight years, not less than one Championship facet will characteristic within the FA Cup semi-finals. However, with each golf equipment contained in the division’s prime six because the common season enters its ultimate 9 games, maybe Sheffield United and Blackburn Rovers would not thoughts specializing in returning to the highest flight on the expense of ending their cup run.

The Blades could also be dealing with monetary “cuts, cuts, cuts” – as supervisor Paul Heckingbottom put it – however historical past is on their facet; Blackburn haven’t crushed Sheffield United at Bramall Lane since Alan Shearer nabbed a brace to overturn Andy Scott’s opener in 1994 – simply two outfielders to have featured for Blackburn this season had been alive on the time.

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Grimsby Town have the possibility to indelibly ink the membership’s identify into FA Cup folklore in entrance of 5,000 inflatable fish-waving travelling followers this weekend. Already, the Mariners have grow to be simply the fifth fourth-tier facet within the competitors’s historical past to make it so far as the quarter-finals. However, Oxford United (1964), Colchester United (1971), Bradford City (1976) and Cambridge United (1990) all had their fairytale runs concluded earlier than the semi-finals.

Brighton, who sit 76 locations above Grimsby and harbour real aspirations of European soccer subsequent season, don’t seem to be amiable hosts. Although, Roberto De Zerbi insisted that his facet are in for “a difficult game” and it might be “a big, big mistake” to underestimate the Mariners as Brighton purpose to attain their first semi-ultimate since 1983.

How to watch on TV

Fulham first contested a aggressive fixture at Old Trafford in 1922. The 2-2 draw the Cottagers earned towards Manchester United within the second division has been one of many few relative successes loved by the membership on the venue within the subsequent century.

Over the final 101 years, Fulham have received simply two matches towards Manchester United at Old Trafford, dropping 33 of their 40 visits.

Marco Silva has this steely iteration of the Cottagers heading in the right direction for the membership’s first prime-half Premier League end in 11 years however it’s been twenty years for the reason that membership’s final victory on the Theatre of Dreams.

How to watch on TV