The FA Cup third round will be played between January 6 and January 9 and can be streamed online here. This is the stage where the Premier League teams will enter the competition.
Manchester United will start the round of fixtures against Everton at Old Trafford on January 6. The Red Devils will be favourites against a struggling Toffees outfit and it could be a routine win with their excellent home form recently. The club have won their last six games at Old Trafford, keeping five clean sheets.
Meanwhile, Chelsea’s visit of Manchester City should grab plenty of interest. The teams have already faced each other in the Carabao Cup third round in November where City prevailed with a 2-0 win. Before the FA Cup tie on January 8, the teams will meet in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge three days before. City should be favourites for the FA Cup third round tie with home advantage, but Chelsea will be desperate to avoid an early exit from another Cup competition.
Liverpool’s home meeting against Wolverhampton Wanderers could be another game to look forward to. The Reds have an exceptional league record against the Midlands outfit and have won their last 11 encounters. Their only losses against them during this period have come in the 2017 and 2019 FA Cups (2-1 defeats). Klopp has been criticised in the past of playing weakened sides in the early rounds of the Cup competitions. We won’t be amazed if he hands the game on a platter to Wolves with similar team selection despite Liverpool being the holders.
Apart from the above ties, Arsenal’s trip to Oxford United could be one to have an eye on. The game will be played on a Monday night (January 9). On paper, the north London giants are overwhelming favourites to beat Oxford but the League One side will be eyeing a shock upset. Arsenal are the record winners of the competition with 14 titles but have suffered some early exits. Over the past five seasons, they have bowed out before the fifth round on four occasions while going on to win the competition in 2020.
Brentford’s London derby against West Ham United also deserves a mention. The Bees and Hammers have had contrasting fortunes in the top-flight. While the former are now in the top 10, the Hammers are just one point adrift of the drop zone on the back of four straight losses. The Bees will be eyeing a third-straight win over the Hammers after doing the league double over them last term.
