Updated at 09.02
Sunderland v Southampton (Saturday, 12.45)
Sunderland have a slight advantage in this game, given that they were afforded an extra rest when their midweek league tie was postponed.
Southampton, though, will go into this match with confidence high, having produced an impressive performance in beating Hull 1-0 on Tuesday night.
Yet while the Saints may have the far healthier league position, Sunderland are unbeaten in the three games between the sides so far this season, so it would be no surprise if that trend continues on Saturday.
Bet: Draw @ 12/5
Cardiff v Wigan (Saturday, 15.00)
On the face of it, Cardiff should be strong favourites to win this game, given that they are a league above their opponents.
That said, Wigan have knocked out Premier League opposition already this season, and are — lest it be forgotten — the current FA Cup holders.
Nonetheless, the Welsh side have shown signs of life under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recently, and should have enough quality to navigate this tricky test.
Bet: Cardiff @ 11/10
Sheffield Wednesday v Charlton (Saturday, 15.00)
By no means the most glamorous tie of the weekend, as two Championship sides meet in a game that either could probably do without.
Wednesday, who have just signed Irish interational Leon Best on emergency loan, look the better side on paper, as they go into the game nine points ahead of relegation-threatened Charlton in the league.
Moreover, recent form also indicates there can only be one winner, with the Owls unbeaten in 11 of their last 12 matches, while their opponents have now lost four consecutive games in the Championship.
Bet: Sheffield Wednesday @ 21/20
Man City v Chelsea (Saturday, 17.15)
A repeat of the Premier League clash from a few weeks back that Chelsea narrowly won 1-0, this game should be an equally tight affair.
City will still have to cope with the absences of key players Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho, though Samir Nasri could return for Manuel Pellegrini’s side.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have injury problems of their own, with both Gary Cahill and John Terry injured.
But despite the Londoners winning the last game, City are probably still slight favourites with their home advantage, yet both may have to reluctantly accept the unwelcome prospect of a replay if it’s closely fought as expected.
Bet: Draw 12/5
Everton v Swansea (Sunday, 13.30)
Would Everton value an FA Cup triumph ahead of a Champions League spot at the end of the season? Financially at least, a place in Europe’s top competition would be far more beneficial for the club.
They face a tricky enough fixture this weekend against a Swansea side who have looked reasonably good since Gary Monk took over from Michael Laudrup, earning a win and a draw thus far.
The Welsh team could also be handed a boost, with key striker Michu likely to return from injury, but will it be enough to prevail against Roberto Martinez’s impressive Toffees?
Bet: Everton @ 4/7
Sheffield United v Nottingham Forest (Sunday, 15.00)
Having already beaten Premier League opposition in the form of West Ham, Championship high-flyers Nottingham Forest should be good enough to overcome Sheffield United, who are currently in the League One relegation zone.
Irish eyes will be on Simon Cox and in particular, Andy Reid, who has played a pivotal role in helping to turn Forest into promotion contenders this season.
And while both sides will be keener to focus on their respective league battles, the prestigious prospect of a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals should ensure a highly competitive contest.
Bet: Nottingham Forest @ 13/10
Arsenal v Liverpool (Sunday, 16.00)
It is impossible to discuss this game without mentioning Liverpool’s incredible 5-1 thrashing of Arsenal last weekend.
And after such a significant result, a swift follow-up game between two sides when one had previously emerged emphatically victorious would seem a foregone conclusion, in most cases.
Yet Arsenal have shown an ability to respond to big setbacks impressively over the course of the season, with the shock opening day loss at home to Aston Villa being a prime example.
So don’t be surprised if the Gunners provide a far sterner test for Brendan Rodgers’ side this time around.
Bet: Draw @ 12/5
Brighton v Hull (Monday, 19.45)
Probably the fifth-round game in which an upset is most likely to occur – Brighton have home advantage and may well be in the Premier League next year, as they currently sit just one point below the Championship play-off places.
Hull, by contrast, have had a difficult season, and are still just three points above the relegation zone in the top flight.
That said, Steve Bruce’s side have consistently taken the cup competitions seriously this season, if their committed performances on such occasions are anything to go by, so a win for the Seagulls still looks improbable.
Bet: Hull @ 2/1
Accumulator:
A tenner on the above results would net you precisely €18,346.52.
First published at 19.46 on Friday
Haha, where are all the united fans who were abusing Liverpool last night?
@Coner Willis: on the next plane out of Basel
@Coner Willis: the article was uploaded a minute ago. Relax your cax
@Coner Willis: we lost 1-0 we didn’t give a 3 goal lead away
@Coner Willis: Liverpool are still sh!te though.
@Coner Willis: it goes down to head to head results. So United have already qualified having beaten Basel 3-0. Basel cant overtake them.
They will have to lose 4-0 to miss out on winning the group.
So put that in your pipe and smoke it.
@Alan Farrell: Loss to Basel who are awful versus draw with Sevilla who are good. Which is worse?
@Figo murphy: Wrong you fool. Get beat by Moscow and Basel win you’re out.
@Figo murphy: Couldn’t give a f*ck if united qualify or not so I won’t be putting anything anywhere.
@Figo murphy: I am embarassed for you. Why post and be so sure about it if you dont have a rashers what you are talking about?
@Is mise muc gránna: haha fool he says, even though you are completely incorrect yourself ya eejit
Delighted! Hahaha
@Scorpionvenomm: Liverpool didnt lose genius. They were an embarrassment in the second half but they got a point.
@tom mc: might as well of lost giving away a 3 goal lead
@Paul P O’Sullivan: I’m 100% right. Do your homework and don’t be so rude.
@Is mise muc gránna: ask an adult to explain this to you:
If two or more teams are equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following criteria are applied to determine the rankings (in descending order):
a) higher number of points obtained in the group matches played among the teams in question;
b) superior goal difference from the group matches played among the teams in question;
c) higher number of goals scored in the group matches played among the teams in question;
d) higher number of goals scored away from home in the group matches played among the teams in question;
E) superior goal difference from all group matches played;
@Figo murphy: it’s goal difference
@Figo murphy: wrong
@Paul P O’Sullivan: You should be embarrassed for yourself PAUL. His reasoning is 100% sound. LOSER.
@Enda McCallion: no its not sound. If Utd lose by 5 and Basel win, then Utd are out of the champions league. They have not qualified and it is mathematically possible for them not to qualify as it would be the results between 3 teams that are taken into account.
@Coner Willis: Sorry Coner(weird spelling of your name by the way)…id a tough day and needed to watch highlights of last nights game to unwind and have a laugh..
@Coner Willis: losing to Basel who’ve never lost to an English team at home, including Liverpool in that, and still being basically through, vs losing a 3 goal lead against a mid table Spanish team… but yes united are the embarrassment here… sure..
@Ben L: I never said man utd were an embarrassment and Sevilla are a top 4 side in La Liga. The only embarrassment here is you who somehow thinks that Basel are better than Sevilla.
Makes last night seem slightly better
@Ollie Watson: how is there so many people from Liverpool and Manchester on an Irish site like this??
@Joe: You’d think the Irish, would be supporting their own local teams and buying their gear?
@Stephen murphy: You’d think an Irishman would know the Irish league is finished for the season.
Still go thru but my God r they awful to watch? 700 mill to play like a pulis side!! Hammered when they meet decent side
@David Mc Nally: did u watch the game? Thought not, you’d mustered 2 shots on target whole game and that was after the lanky poodle was brought on and yous hoofed it to him! Played off the pitch as you will be against any European side, played that way tonight against Basel! 700 mill for that
@Philip Mckenna: I’m a United d fan, missed the match was working! But, f×#k me you just summed up every United game we’ve played since Mourhino took over ( further back if I’m honest!). Pure shite.
@Brendan McElherron: What he said^^^ I know mate I’m Chelsea fan most I know wanted him gone, havin hazard on bench because he couldn’t run around like a headless chicken like Felleini ??
@David Mc Nally: I was on about Chelsea game? Yous barely seen courtouis until poodle came on and yous pulissed it to him, it was a Pasting in everything but score, embarrassingly one sided my Man U brother said!
They say Karma is a cruel mistress.
@Ciarán: She is boy. She is indeed haha
@Jim Demps: So now Im back to give it billy big bollock, Whats your point?
The lack of knowledge about champions league football on this article is shocking. Here you go: United are a joke but they have still secured qualification for the knockout stages as only Basel and CSKA can catch them on points, and Basel can’t overtake them as head to head is the first tiebreaker. So they are through and can only be overtaken in top spot if CSKA beat them with better than a 4-1 score line, the result United beat them away.
@Brian: Brian, I think Gd between the two teams comes lower down the list, but I may be wrong. Not sure….
@Brian: sky sports are reporting that united need a result in the final game to qualify
@Brian: but in your hypothetical outcome Basel still have a better head to head against CSKA so they’ll overtake them. So each team on 12 points will have a better head to head against one other team. Therefore, United haven’t qualified yet.
@The Bloody Nine: what does it come down to then? United have the best goal difference
@The Bloody Nine: United are guaranteed to have a better head to head than Basel, therefore securing a round of 16 spot. Keep up.
@Brian: they are not through brian. Let me say that again. united are not through. Keep up
@Brian: http://www.skysports.com/share/11139070
@Brian: http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42070071
@FPL Thommo: there’s a lot of confusion going on at the minute as the scenario is unprecedented. But they are. I expect an apology from you when all is ironed out.
@Brian: will find out if Man Utd are in Europa cup after next game. Head to head will be equal if they lose, but overall goal difference counts first I think… Not between the two. But I do not expect that.
@FPL Thommo: read the rules on champions league tiebreakers, head to head is the first one. How could Basel overtake them? And even IF it weren’t the case and it were to somehow go to goal difference between all teams, United would need to get a serious trouncing not to go through.
@Brian: you’re saying united are through. You’re wrong. They’re not. If they lose by 5 goals in the next match they’re out. Unlikely but possible.
Nothing to do with their head to head record with Basel.
I expect an apology from you when you wake up. Cheers.
@Brian: United overtake Basel on h2h; CSKA overtake United on h2h; Basel overtake CSKA on h2h. They’re going to be stuck in an infinite loop of overtaking each other for eternity. And Liverpool will just stumble onwards and win it outright.
@FPL Thommo: I’ll bring the camera.
@Graham: yeah but the head to head also goes by head to head goal difference, i.e. aggregate of the 2 games. So basically United beat Basel 3-1 over the 2 games in that scenario. And even if it goes to a total goal difference between all 3 teams (it would exclude benfica as only equal teams are included) they would still be effectively through as CSKA and Basel’s GD would diminish massively if their benfica results were excluded. In short, United are through, and if not it will take a serious record breaking pasting for them to get knocked out.
@Brian: bottom line is you’re saying united are already through. They’re not. Do some research. Find me an article that says they’re through.
You can’t. Because you’re wrong.
@FPL Thommo: “if they lose by 5 goals they are out”. That is not a fact at all. You’re absolutely wrong there, you’re not taking Basel into account at all.
@Brian: no Brian, overall Gd counts first, not head to head. If they pull of a shocking big win, they are out……
@Brian: jesus brian look it up ffs. If Moscow murder united in the final game, and Basel win their game, united will go out on goal difference.
Therefore they’re not through yet. I don’t know how else to explain this to you.
@The Bloody Nine: I actually see what you mean there. Ok lads so I’ve done more research and may have been slightly wrong, my apologies if so. If 3 teams finish on same points it looks like it comes down to 1: most points between the 3 against each other and if they are equal, 2: Goal difference against each other. So basically exclude results against benfica and do up a new table. At the minute United are +5 against CSKA and Basel, CSKA are -4, Basel are -1 and will stay on -1 as they have played their H2H’s out. So from my new knowledge United need to be beaten by 7 goals to go below Basel in the 3 team group. Bad night for me but sure look I got some unreliable info. If we are being pedantic, United aren’t through, but in the real world they are.
@FPL Thommo: to be fair, there are a legion of people swarming Twitter with the first tie breaker being the be all and end all they’ve even got screenshots to boot! I did technically get it wrong but let’s be realistic, United shipping 7+ goals at home to a team they beat 4-1? They are through.
@Brian: if Basel and Moscow do by some miracle win their final games, on the tiebreaker between the 3 teams they would all be level with 6 points each – united have beaten both Basel & Moscow(6 points) , Basel have beaten United & Moscow(6 points) & Moscow would also be on 6 points if they beat United as they have also beaten Moscow. Think it then comes down to goal difference which united have handy.
@Brian: of course they’ll get through. BBC are saying it’s six goals. Whatever the actual number doesn’t really matter. I’m sure united will sail through. Fair play for holding your hands up.
@Brian: fair play, Brian. People were forgetting about the Basel/CSKA equation. As you said it’s an unprecedented situation and not going to happen anyway.
@FPL Thommo: yeah I guess it could actually be 6 and then based on goals scored. At least we’ll know this inside out if this comes up again next year haha
@The Bloody Nine: the42.ie should hire Statto for moments like this, feck, baddiel and skinner too… bring back the Phoenix from the ashes or what ever it was called…. that’s it now, off to YouTube….
@Brian: God you made yourself look like a right dope. I’m embarrassed for you.
Era just a four nil loss against moscow now and United are out!!!
@Bognor regis: no they aren’t, they’re guaranteed at least second on h2h
With our head to head im pretty sure we’ve to lose 4-0 at home to not qualify. Hardly curtains and should have been 4 up at half time. Be fine
@Ray Taff: United are through head to head is better than Basel just have to sort out top of the group is all
@Lefty: Scratch that not sure if there is head to head?
@Ray Taff: If you think after spending almost three quarters of a billion on players and playing like a Pulis side is “fine” then im speechless. Mourinho out.
Why is there so many comments about Liverpool here? Didn’t they play last night ffs.
Jeez Louise. Mourinho has spent 400,000 million and look at the state of them. Calling a 36 year old off the bench to rescue it against BASEL. They are a dire team to watch. And play horrendous football. Great satisfaction for Pool fans who got a brillo point on Seville last night. No players be getting rested for their last game. Brillo !
@Is mise muc gránna: keep saying Brillo there. Lose a 3 nil lead… Brillo! Spartak for the win, maybe yous will get Celtic in the Europa, bitta craic.
@Brian: Mourinho the new Basel Fawlty hahahhahaah brillo just brillo!
Still too many average players in our squad.. Mourinho needs to wake up
@KevMunster: Darmian is West ham standard and herrera gone backwards
Down to the last game for England’s weaker teams…. They both had the easiest groups too….
Would everyone agree that Man U under mourinho after that horrendously pi$ poor effort are without doubt the worst of all english teams in europe. Like have they not got the memo. The worst uefa cup in history was last year. This is Champions league FGS.
@Is mise muc gránna: a maybe, but certainly all agree that all your accounts need an extended holiday…. Seriously man……
@Is mise muc gránna: You’re just becoming a parody of yourself now. The time has come to mute you,it used to give me a giggle reading your sh*t as it was mildly entertaining. I wish you luck in your future endeavours Alan.
Jose just got Basel Fawltied hahahhaa brillo just brillo !
whoops.
@purple rain: 3-3 whoops
Great night for ABU.
As a person who is completely disinterested this thread is a hoot. It’s like 2 6 year olds arguing.
Ah stop! Missed the last 20.
Pulisball strikes again.