FA Cup Preview: Chelsea vs. Brighton highlights fourth round
Chelsea versus Brighton headlines a busy slate of FA Cup matches that is full of intrigue and Premier League competition. John Molinaro gets you set for the FA Cup’s fourth round with everything you need to know.
Last month’s third round of the 2024-25 FA Cup produced one major upset when second-tier Plymouth Argyle stunned Brentford to send the Premier League club crashing out of the tournament.
What surprises, if any, will the fourth round of one of the world’s oldest sporting competitions bring when it resumes this week?
Here’s what you need to know about the fourth round of the FA Cup, which kicks off on Friday.
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FA Cup on Sportsnet
One of the world’s oldest sporting competitions resumes this week with the fourth round of the FA Cup. You can watch the 32 teams remaining try and advance on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.
Single-elimination format
The 16 matches that make up the fourth round are all single-elimination matches, and not two-legged, home-and-away affairs. If a team loses, it’s eliminated.
The 2024-25 FA Cup features a significant change with no match replays in the proper rounds. That means if a game is tied after 90 minutes of regulation time, 30 minutes of extra time will be added. If the match is still tied after that, a penalty shootout will determine the winner.
The field of remaining teams
The fourth round features 32 teams across the various levels of English soccer.
Of those 32 teams, 17 are from the Premier League, or 53 per cent.
The Championship (England’s second division) boasts nine clubs and League One (third division) has five teams remaining. The field is rounded out by Doncaster Rovers of League Two (fourth division).
Manchester United vs. Leicester City kicks things off
Friday’s clash at Old Trafford (3:00 p.m. ET) between the two Premier League clubs gives Leicester a chance to earn a measure of revenge. The Foxes have already suffered a pair of losses this season at the home of the Red Devils – 5-2 in the Leagues Cup and 3-0 in the Premier League. Manchester United have never earned three home wins against the same opponent in a single season, so history will be made if they can get the better of their top-tier rivals.
Friday’s match is a reunion of sorts for Ruud van Nistelrooy. The former Dutch striker earned legendary status at Manchester United during his playing career, scoring 150 goals in 219 appearances across all competitions from 2001 to 2006. He served as an assistant coach and interim boss for the Red Devils last year before being hired as Leicester City’s new manager on Nov. 29.
The Foxes have won seven of their previous eight fourth-round ties in the FA Cup, so history has been on their side in recent years at this stage of the tournament. But they’ll need much more than that to stop Portuguese international Bruno Fernandes, who has seven goals and three assists in his last 10 FA Cup appearances for Manchester United.
Chelsea vs. Brighton Hove & Albion highlights fourth round
The fourth round features four all-Premier League battles, but the most intriguing one pits Chelsea vs. Brighton Hove & Albion at Falmer Stadium on Saturday (3 p.m. ET). Chelsea sits fourth in the Premier League table, just nine points above 10th-place Brighton.
Brighton hammered second-division outfit Norwich City 4-0 in the FA Cup’s previous round. But the Seagulls will have a much tougher time against Chelsea, who boasts one of the top scorers in the Premier League this season in Cole Palmer (14 goals).
What’s more, Brighton have lost four in a row to Chelsea in all competitions, and have just one win in their previous 11 home encounters against the London-based club (with seven losses).
Ten years since Aston Villa reached the 5th round
The other eye-catching battle of Premier League teams in the fourth round sees Aston Villa host Tottenham on Sunday (12:35 p.m. ET). A victory by Villa would see them advance to the fifth round for the first time since 2014-15 – they went on to lose 4-0 to Arsenal in the final.
Villa will have revenge on their minds after suffering a humbling 4-1 loss away to Tottenham in the Premier League in November. The Birmingham club opened the scoring that day courtesy of Morgan Rogers in the 32nd minute before the Londoners scored four unanswered goals to snap the visitors’ seven-match unbeaten run.
One player that Villa should be leery of is Son Heung-min. The South Korean forward and Spurs captain has 14 goals and 12 assists in 29 FA Cup appearances.
Can Plymouth make it 2 in a row and upset Liverpool?
Plymouth Argyle is still riding high after bouncing Brentford from the FA Cup following their upset win over the Premier League club in the third round. But the Pilgrims face a mammoth task when they host Liverpool on Sunday (10 a.m. ET).
The Reds currently top the Premier League table with a six-point edge over second-place Arsenal, and their only loss came during the fourth week of the season. Since then, Arne Slot’s side has gone unbeaten in 19 matches, including wins in each of their previous three outings. Liverpool also sports the best attack in the Premier League (led by top scorer Mohamed Salah’s 21 goals) and the stingiest defence (just 21 goals against).
Meanwhile, Plymouth sits in last place in the English second division, have just one win in their last 16 games, and look destined for relegation. What’s more, the Pilgrims are winless in their last eight meetings in all competitions against Liverpool, with their previous victory coming in 1956.
Doncaster Rovers vs. Crystal Palace: Classic David and Goliath
Mixed in with all the Premier League teams in the fourth round are Doncaster Rovers, a fourth-tier side that is the lowest club still remaining in the competition. Rovers play host to Premier League outfit Crystal Palace on Monday (2:45 p.m. ET).
This is a total mismatch on paper, a classic David and Goliath battle between teams at completely different ends of the English soccer pyramid. But maybe Rovers can take inspiration from non-league team Maidstone United, who last year upset Ipswich Town to advance to the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Editor’s note:
John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 20 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer. TFC Republic can be found here.
