FA Cup Quarter Final Predictions

jonjoward1998
Mar 16, 2023
4 min read

SATURDAY:

MAN CITY V BURNLEY

Man City looked like their usual selves against RB Leipzig in midweek and Erling Haaland in particular was in the mood. Kevin De Bruyne looked like he was back to his best also after some surprising below-par performances since the World Cup. Both he and City will now look to kick from this.

Pep usually plays a strong team in the cup competitions and I can see him play a strong team in this one. City will face Burnley in the Premier League next season and Pep will want to know what kind of team they'll be facing come next season.

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany returns to the Etihad for the first time since he left City in 2019 and I'm sure he'll get a good reception from the home fans. He's a legend at the club because of what he achieved during his there and was a key part of every success he achieved.

The Clarets are still flying high in the Championship and Kompany will want to field a strong team so his player can experience what kind of team they'll be facing next season. With Kompany having played under Pep for three seasons, his knowledge of his tactics could prove useful.

PREDICTION: 2-1

Burnley will try and have a go but I think Man City will have more than enough to win this cup tie. They're far superior in quality and although I think Burnley will give a good account of themselves, City should still have enough in them to see themselves through.

SUNDAY:

SHEFFIELD UNITED V BLACKBURN

Both sides are going for promotion in the Championship this season and both also caused major upsets in the previous round.

Sheffield United beat Spurs in the 5th Round thanks to a brilliant goal from Illiman Ndiaye. They put in a disciplined and organised performance to win that game for which they deserve a lot of credit for as they made a number of changes and had their manager up in the stands.

The Blades have been inconsistent recently in the Championship but they should still have enough to achieve promotion. With their sights firmly set on promotion Paul Heckingbottom might make a number of changes here so his best players are fit for the run in.

Two visits to Wembley could be on the cards for Blackburn this season if they win this game with promotion via the play offs being their more realistic route. They're having a brilliant season under John Dahl Tomasson and they beat their opponents fairly recently which will give them confidence.

Rovers knocked out Leicester in the previous round where they were the better side overall. They forced Leicester into mistakes on a number of occasions and caused them a number of problems.

PREDICTION: 1-2

I fancy Blackburn to win this one because they beat the Blades earlier this month and I can see them win again. With the Blades likely to make a number of changes with promotion being their priority, I think Rovers will just edge this one.

BRIGHTON V GRIMSBY

It's good to see Brighton doing well in the FA Cup this season because they're having a great season in the league. They'll obviously want to qualify for Europe this season but an FA Cup run alongside that would mark a very good season for them. They could potentially reach the final.

Grimsby caused hands down the shock of the 5th Round when they beat Southampton and they'll be fancying themselves to cause another Premier League scalp here. This game will be tougher though as Brighton are having a much better season than their previous FA Cup opponents.

Paul Hurst's side have nothing to play for in League 2 with the club sitting comfortably in mid-table. This should give him the reason to play his strongest team here.

PREDICTION: 3-0

I'm going for a Brighton win here because I think they'll be too strong for Grimsby. It would of course be brilliant for a League 2 side to be in an FA Cup Semi final but I think Brighton will play a strong team here as they'll want to go far in this competition.

MAN UNITED V FULHAM

Man United are set to be without Casemiro for the next four games including this one following his red card in the draw with Southampton. United did win games during his previous absence but there were moments in those games where their midfield was broken through on a number of occasions. This one could be another as Fulham are a side who can cause teams a number of problems.

It's been a while since Fulham last reached this stage of the FA Cup and their good run in it has coincided with a very good league season. They're pushing for a place in Europe and have played some excellent football all season. Marco Silva deserves a lot of credit for the job he's done.

Their season has however tailed off a bit recently following back to back defeat to Brentford and Arsenal. Aleksandar Mitrovic's form has tailed off as well with the Serb having not scored since the start of January. The Cottagers will need their talisman to start firing again if they're to avoid the season tailing off even further.