FA Cup Fourth Round Review – The Winners and Losers from this Weekend

Andy Clark
No Premier League action this weekend, but the FA Cup is fun and the magic is still there, right? We have taken a look at a review of the weekend action, focusing on the FA Cup fourth round fixtures. Have a look at our winners and losers roundup from the fourth round below in a weekend where League One Oxford and Shrewsbury Town were the big winners from the FA Cup ties.  

Winners

 

Oxford United earn a replay at St James’ Park

League One Oxford’s performance went a little unnoticed at the weekend. Currently sitting seventh in League One, the Yellows will be focused on the possibility of promotion to the Championship this season. In their little break from league action, however, Karl Robinson’s men had time to take a trip up to Premier League side Newcastle United in the FA Cup fourth round and come away with a draw. The team were well worth the result and will fancy their chances in the replay having already seen off West Ham this campaign, and they are no strangers to the big occasion. As well as West Ham, Oxford have faced Manchester City twice in the last two seasons. They weren’t successful in either of those games, but they won’t be feeling the pressure come the replay against Newcastle at the Kassam.  

Jason Cummings earns Shrewsbury a replay

Forward Cummings has been in the news a lot. From breaking televisions to throwing food in a restaurant, he’s been in the public eye for the wrong reasons pretty often. This weekend, though, all the reasons were for football. The Scot was named on the bench for Shrewsbury Town’s fourth-round tie against Liverpool on Sunday. With his team 2-0 down against the runaway leaders in the Premier League, many may have given up hope. Not Cummings. After being introduced in the 60th minute, the former Peterborough forward netted twice – once from the penalty spot and once from open play – to earn his team a replay back at Anfield. It was a night he will never forget.  

Manchester United put in a 6 star display

United are terrible to watch these days but their fans certainly would have enjoyed seeing their side trounce lowly League One side Tranmere Rovers this weekend. The Red Devils were 5-0 up at half-time and even got to see Jesse Lingard score. Harry Maguire also scored a banger and it was a dominant showing from United. It must feel nice after their poor performances in the league of late.  

Losers:

 

Jurgen Klopp’s hissy-fit about the replay

Liverpool threw away a two-goal lead at League One Shrewsbury on Sunday and will have to play a replay if they want to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup. We know about Klopp’s hate for the number of fixtures his team have. He probably would’ve rather lost this than drawn. If the on-the-pitch showing wasn’t bad enough, the German caused havoc in his post-match press conference by claiming he and his first-team players won’t be in attendance at the replay. It’s due to take place during the Premier League’s new winter break. With the league saying they expect the clubs to respect said break, Klopp reckons he’s left with no choice. He’s caused uproar and the huge debate of top teams not respecting the cup has surfaced once again. Klopp is a bad guy this week.  

Coventry and Birmingham have to do it all again

Not only did Coventry and Birmingham play out a dull 0-0 draw at the weekend, both teams were playing at home. You read that right. As we know, Coventry have plenty of ownership problems. This season they’ve been kicked out of their home ground, the Ricoh, and have been ground sharing with Birmingham at St. Andrew’s. So when the two were drawn against each other in the FA Cup, with Coventry the home side, there was a bit of awkwardness. The day was strange and, as the game resulted in a 0-0 draw, the teams will have to do it all over again next month. Same ground, same teams, same fans. Just different ends of the stadium and different dressing rooms. Different kits, too. It’s a mess.  

Tim Ream ends Fulham hopes after 6 minutes

Imagine your team is paying the Champions of England away from home and your centre-half decides to get sent off after six minutes. That’s what Fulham defender Tim Ream did for Fulham against Manchester City on Sunday. The American had a terrible season last year in the Premier League with Fulham and his poor form has continued this campaign. Against City, with Grabiel Jesus through on goal, Ream produced the foul and saw red. A travesty. https://twitter.com/tonypdickinson/status/1221419879795961856?s=21 The game went onto finish 4-0, and what should’ve been a great occasion for the players and fans became one to forget. Read More: How will the fourth-round replays play out? Read our FA Cup tips to find out.