The FA Cup’s fourth round concludes with a game apiece on Monday and Tuesday, and there is the potential for an upset in both fixtures.
Monday sees Tottenham head an hour or so west to face Wycombe, and on Tuesday Bournemouth host Crawley.
Wanderers to Be Respected
Wycombe have not played for 16 days due to coronavirus but have fond memories of their last outing, a 4-1 win over Preston in the third round.
Gareth Ainsworth’s side sit bottom of the Championship and are 10 points shy of safety. Survival is clearly have their priority as they look to avoid relegation at the first time of asking, having only made it to the second tier for the first time in their 133-year history in July.
Therefore, they could see this game as a free hit, as they did on their sole previous meeting with Spurs. That also came in the fourth round in 2017, leading 3-2 at White Hart Lane after 89 minutes, only to eventually lose 4-3.
Cup Can Provide Silverware for Spurs
Seven-time winners Tottenham’s class finally shone through four years ago and they head to Buckinghamshire as the 1/4 favourites to book their fifth round spot against Everton.
That perhaps reflects the 39 league places that separate the two teams and despite sitting fifth in the top flight, a point and a place outside of the top four, cup competitions could be Spurs’ salvation this season.
There’s an old cliche that the Lilywhites win things “When the Year Ends in One”, as immortalised in the 1991 FA Cup final single they released with ‘Rockney’ stars Chas and Dave. Jose Mourinho has already guided his team to April’s EFL Cup final and lifting a first FA Cup since that success 30 years ago would only boost the Portuguese’s reputation.
Don’t expect it to be easy but Spurs should make it eight games unbeaten and are 7/5 to win with both teams scoring. Meanwhile, Brazilian forward Carlos Vinicius, a hat-trick hero in the 5-0 third round victory over Marine is 9/4 to Score 2 or More.
Cherries Determined to Rediscover Form
Plenty has changed since Bournemouth last faced Crawley in December 2012, a 3-0 home win for the Dorset side, when the pair were both in League One.
Life has been tough for the Cherries since their 4-1 third round win over Oldham, drawing 1-1 with Millwall and losing 1-0 to both Luton and Derby.
The Cup could prove a catalyst for their recovery as Jason Tindall aims to reignite their campaign, with them still sixth in the Championship and well in the promotion shake-up, with them 11/1 to top the standings.
Giant Killers Eye Another Upset
First they need to overcome Crawley, who produced one of the performances of the third round by beating Leeds 3-0.
The Reds are another side who have not played since the third round and their dearth of action has left them 12th in League Two. However, they have played three games less than some other teams in the division and they are just three points adrift of the final play-off spot.
John Yems’ men are unbeaten in their last 10 and an upset screams value at 29/4.
That said, Bournemouth’s squad is deep and with the likes of Josh King, David Brooks and Rodrigo Riquelme likely to start in attack.
Another win and both to score is 17/10 and it should be an entertaining evening on the south coast, with the prize for the winner a trip to Burnley next month.
*All odds correct at time of writing