West Brom and Liverpool are involved in one of the more incident-packed FA Cup ties of recent centuries, while Spurs need a late goal from the usual suspect to save them from an inglorious exit that is instead saved for West Ham.
Five goals and three major video assistant referee (VAR) decisions ensured Saturday night FA Cup fourth round football produced primetime entertainment at Anfield.
The 3-2 win for the Baggies also confirmed that Liverpool’s Gameweek 31 home fixture with Watford will go ahead as planned now that both sides are out of the cup.
The competition’s quarter-finals collide with Gameweek 31’s schedule on the weekend of March 17 and, at present, the only league matches certain to go ahead are the Liverpool fixture and Stoke City v Everton.
Today’s matches, replays and the entire fifth round will add more fixtures to that list, but the news that popular Liverpool players Mohamed Salah (55.1%) and Roberto Firmino (40.1%) should be in league action (barring injury) will help ease the otherwise complex planning required from Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers.
Both were front and centre of a wild tie at Anfield, Firmino opening the scoring with a divine chip after Salah’s effort was saved by Albion keeper Ben Foster, while the Egyptian fired his 25th goal of the season to make it 2-3 late on.
Firmino also missed a penalty, belatedly awarded when VAR was used to confirm a foul on Salah. This miss could lead to yet another change in Liverpool’s designated spot-kick taker.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have now missed six of their last ten penalties in all competitions, all spurned by four different players – Origi, Firmino, Salah and Milner.
With Milner only a bit-part player this campaign, Salah may now be given a second opportunity to lay claim.
Both sides were at close to full strength at Anfield, with West Brom bouncing back from Firmino’s goal with a quick brace from Jay Rodriguez.
The striker smashed home after being put through by Chris Brunt before doubling his tally when he steered in Kieran Gibbs’ low cross.
The Baggies had a third goal ruled out for offside by VAR, only for the technology to then confirm a Joel Matip own goal when the Reds defender turned Craig Dawson’s cross-shot into the net on the stroke of half-time.
Salah’s late strike – from a Firmino assist – set up a frantic finale, but West Brom rode out the storm.
Rodriguez caught the eye throughout, suggesting he is close to the form that earned him an England call-up before long-term injury stalled his career.
Priced at 5.5 and owned by just 1.2%, he is in fine form, with two goals and an assist from his last four league starts and five in six in all competitions. He’s also now confirmed as the Baggies’ designated penalty taker.
But trips to Man City and Chelsea over the next three Gameweeks will deter most from immediate investment. West Brom’s fixtures do ease for six Gameweeks following the Chelsea match before ties with Man United, Liverpool and Spurs usher in a testing season run-in.
The win also came at a price, with Gibbs and Hal Robson-Kanu both withdrawn through injury, while Jonny Evans and Jake Livermore also limped through to the final whistle. All four injuries are reported as hamstring issues, which gives manager Alan Pardew some major headaches ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Manchester City.
Owners of City’s attacking assets – particularly Sergio Aguero – will be far less concerned.
As for Liverpool, Klopp made his FA Cup intentions clear by sending out a strong line-up.
The return from injury of left-back Alberto Moreno complicates matters in defence, although Liverpool’s resilience remains an issue – they’ve failed to keep a clean sheet for six matches in all competitions and the introduction of Virgil van Dijk has so far failed to solve their apparent vulnerability at set-plays.
Kane to the rescue
Mutterings about managers not respecting the FA Cup were muted by the teamsheets at Anfield, and Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino was another to send out a strong side.
Not that it did him much good at Newport County, as it required a Harry Kane equaliser eight minutes from time to spare his blushes.
Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and midfielder Christian Eriksen were again absent as they recover from illness, while Son Heung-min, Dele Alli and Ben Davies all started on the bench.
But Pochettino still fielded a number of regular starters, with Kane handed a striker partner in Fernando Llorente as he went with a 4-4-2 formation.
That proved to be a miscalculation as Newport, aided by strong wind and a bumpy pitch, had the best of the first half and finished it a goal to the good.
Spurs reverted to three at the back after the break, with Son, and later Alli and Davies, introduced to chase the match. It took most of the half for Newport to finally succumb when Kane tapped in Son’s flick from a corner.
A replay might not seem like great news for Spurs, or Fantasy managers trying to read their rotation.
But that match will fall between league fixtures with Liverpool (Gameweek 26) and Arsenal (Gameweek 27) and at least provides some definitive clues as to Pochettino’s thinking for the Gunners clash.
It should at least reveal the likely full-back selection, and may also calm fears on the selection of Son.
While Spurs got a scare, Pochettino will surely be content fielding a second-string line-up for the replay, given the importance and difficulty of those two league fixtures.
As for Kane, he’s now scored in three successive matches in all competitions, although an immediate schedule that also involves Man United continues to prompt sales, particularly in light of Aguero’s imminent meeting with West Brom.
More than 87,000+ managers have sold Kane so far, making him the fourth most sold player ahead of Gameweek 25. Indeed, the striker is one of three Spurs players in the five most transferred-out – Eriksen and Son are the others.
Hammers Take Casualties
West Ham boss David Moyes made six changes to the side that drew 1-1 with Bournemouth for the trip to Wigan.
His intention was clearly to concentrate on the league, and he got his wish as his side went down 2-0.
But the circumstances of the defeat were chastening, with Arthur Masuaku seeing red for spitting at an opponent and Pedro Obiang stretchered off with a serious knee injury.
Masuaku will now miss six matches for his indiscretion, which Moyes described as ‘despicable’, meaning the defender will not be available again until Gameweek 31’s visit from Manchester United – if the Red Devils are not involved in an FA Cup quarter-final tie, that is.
The Frenchman had enjoyed a modest upturn in ownership, to 2.3%, when West Ham played two matches in Gameweek 22. But his recent output has been poor, with just eight points from his last six starts.
Obiang, meanwhile, had started all but two of the Hammers’ league matches since Gameweek 11, with Moyes delivering a gloomy assessment of his injury post-match.
“We think it is medial ligament but we will have him sent for a scan to tell us exactly what’s wrong.”
New midfield signing Joao Mario was given a 45-minute run-out, but the side’s resources are now severely stretched, with key men Marko Arnautovic and Manuel Lanzini both sidelined by hamstring injuries.
And those players who remain fit and available offer little attraction to Fantasy managers, despite a schedule (CRY bha WAT liv swa BUR) of some promise.
Saints edge past Watford
Southampton’s mini-revival – they’ve drawn three of their last four league matches – was boosted further by a narrow cup victory over Watford.
Jack Stephens scored the only goal, from a Shane Long rebound, just four minutes into the tie, which was new Hornets boss Javi Gracia’s first match in charge.
The Saints then held on comfortably enough as the visitors mustered just one shot on target all day.
A rare clean sheet – they’ve managed just five in the league this season – bodes well ahead of an excellent run of opponents through to Gameweek 33.
But an injury to full-back Ryan Bertrand, at 4.7% one of only two Southampton players with more than nominal FPL ownership, makes him a doubt for Wednesday’s vital home match against Brighton.
Jeremy Pied replaced him and could now start the midweek contest.
Gracia’s introduction to English football was less than ideal, with reports of Jose Holebas – one of four changes the new coach made to the side – arguing with disgruntled Watford fans after the defeat.
There were also precious few clues available as to Gracia’s tactical intentions.
Known to be a fan of 4-4-2, he set up his side yesterday in a 4-2-3-1 in which Andre Gray was the lone striker, before reverting to his favoured formation and then switching to a 4-3-3 by the end.
Wednesday’s trip to Stoke City will likely provide further clues as to any potential on offer.
Second string Foxes cruise
Leicester City boss Claude Puel talked up the FA Cup prior to yesterday’s match at Peterborough, declaring the competition ‘a big objective for the club’.
He then made ten changes to his team, but that didn’t stop the Foxes from romping to a 5-1 win in which Kelechi Iheanacho and new signing Fousseni Diabate impressed and scored two goals apiece.
Wilfred Ndidi was the other scorer, with assists coming from Adrien Silva and Christian Fuchs.
The presence of the latter in the team was significant, suggesting strongly that Ben Chilwell – who was on the bench at the ABAX Stadium – remains Puel’s first choice left-back.
The 21-year-old has started the last two matches in the league and, at 4.3, is a cheap route into a defence that has kept back-to-back clean sheets and has a schedule (eve SWA mci STK BOU wba) which promises more of the same.
Indeed, Leicester’s fixtures are set fair until the end of the season, with only Man City, Arsenal and Spurs representing major tests across the remaining 14 Gameweeks.
Key assets Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy remained on the bench yesterday as the prospects of a side who have won two and drawn one of their last three league matches remain solid.
Elsewhere…
Huddersfield could only draw 1-1 with Birmingham as coach David Wagner made seven changes to the side that lost at Stoke last weekend.
Striker Steve Mounie scored from a Florent Hadergjona assist for the Terriers.
New signing Alex Pritchard was cup-tied, while midfielder Danny Williams picked up a knock that makes him a doubt for Tuesday’s home match with Liverpool.
Glenn Murray’s knee won Brighton their cup tie at Middlesbrough 1-0, a clearance ricocheting off the striker and into the net in the 90th minute of the tie.
Seagulls’ boss Chris Hughton made seven changes to the team beaten 4-0 by Chelsea in Gameweek 24, with well-owned assets Pascal Gross (15.0%) and Lewis Dunk (3.7%) kept on the bench and Shane Duffy (4.0%) not even in the squad.
Swansea City were held to a 1-1 draw by League Two team Notts County.
Renato Sanches was recalled to the side after a hamstring injury, only to suffer what looked like a recurrence of the issue after 30 minutes.
His replacement, Ki Sung-yeung, then set up Luciano Narsingh’s opener.
Only three players used in Monday’s win over Liverpool started yesterday’s tie, with defender Alfie Mawson one of the trio, while top scorer Jordan Ayew was given just 20 minutes from the bench.
Fellow striker Tammy Abraham was back in action after five matches out injured.
