THE FA Cup quarter-final draw has been made.
And Middlesbrough will have to pull off a third giant killing as they host Chelsea.
- Crystal Palace vs Everton
- Nottingham Forest or Huddersfield vs Liverpool
- Middlesbrough vs Chelsea
- Southampton vs Manchester City
Boro hoping to beat Blues
Middlesbrough face a tough task against Chelsea.
That’s because the Blues have won the EIGHT meetings between the two sides.
The last time Boro beat Chelsea was in 2006.
And the match is also a repeat of the iconic 1997 final, which saw the Londoners emerged victorious.
FT – Everton 2 Boreham Wood 0
Crystal Palace will play Everton in the FA Cup quarters after the Toffees beat Boreham Wood 2-0.
Salomon Rondon scored both goals in Thursday’s 5th round tie as the minnows failed to provide an upset.
Up for the FA Cup
Chelsea are on the hunt for their NINTH FA Cup.
Liverpool are hoping for Cup number eight.
And City need one more for seven.
Who are FA Cup holders?
Leicester City are the current FA Cup champions after beating Chelsea in last year’s final.
Youri Tieleman’s 63rd minute rocket secured a famous 1-0 win for the Foxes at Wembley.
But Leicester crashed out this season in the fourth round to Nottingham Forest, losing 4-1 to the Championship outfit.
Do quarters have extra time?
All FA Cup quarter-final matches will have 30 minutes of extra time if it is a draw after 90 minutes.
There will then be penalties if neither side finds a breakthrough in ET.
FA Cup quarter-final replays were scrapped entirely from 2016.
Eyes on the cash prize
Victors in the quarter-final will receive a cash prize of £360,000.
That’s miles ahead of the paltry £100k Liverpool got for beating Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final.
When will quarters be played?
All four games will be played later this month.
They will take place on the weekend of Friday 18 March to Monday 21 March.
After that, it will be a trip to Wembley for the four sides in the semis.
Taking nothing for granted
Everton had time to tweet their quarter-final draw news before they kicked off against Boreham Wood.
And they pointed out they will only visit Crystal Palace IF they beat the National League side.
Goodison fans seemed happy enough – although some noted that ‘big three’ Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea had again been kept apart.
‘Lucky’ Liverpool and Man City?
Fans of the Prem top two have been swapping jibes about ‘easy draws’ after tonight’s FA Cup quarter-final line-up was unveiled.
Yet both were drawn away.
Liverpool face in-form Nottingham Forest or the Midlanders’ high-flying Championship rivals Huddersfield.
And City visit Prem rivals Southampton.
Can Wood move from Park to Palace?
Boreham Wood have kicked off at Everton in their bid to become only the second non-League team in the modern era to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals.
And if Wood triumph at Goodison Park then the National Leaguers will travel to another top-flight side in Crystal Palace in the last eight.
Will Blues be on cloud nine?
Chelsea being drawn away to Middlesbrough in the quarter-finals will probably has perhaps boosted their hopes of winning the FA Cup for the ninth time.
Our regular reminder…
Here’s the full draw again:
Crystal Palace vs Everton/Boreham Wood
Nottm Forest/Huddersfield vs Liverpool
Middlesbrough vs Chelsea
Southampton vs Man City
It’s not a fix…
Football chiefs can’t win with sceptical fans when it comes to draws.
Keeping the ‘big clubs’ apart means it’s a stitch-up to help the elite.
Pair them together then it’s a conspiracy against one of those teams – or a plot to help ANOTHER of the giants.
Or at least that’s the case if you believe social media.
Here are two of tonight’s first such messages following the quarter-final draw..
What price a treble?
Middlesbrough could land an all-time great ‘TREBLE UPSET’ upset if they beat Chelsea in the FA Cup last eight.
Having beaten Spurs and Man Utd in the past two rounds, the Championship club now host Champions League holders Chelsea.
FULL Q/F DRAW – RECAP
Crystal Palace vs Everton/Boreham Wood
Nottm Forest/Huddersfield vs Liverpool
Middlesbrough vs Chelsea
Southampton vs Man City
Southgate hands home draws for his old clubs
Gareth Southgate joked he did the best he could for his two old clubs in tonight’s draw – by handing them home quarter-final ties,
Man Utd’s conquerors Middlesbrough host Chelsea.
And Crystal Palace have a winnable clash with Everton or Boreham Wood
Southampton vs Man City
Middlesbrough vs Chelsea
Nottm Forest/Huddersfield vs Liverpool
Crystal Palace vs Everton/Boreham Wood
Southgate picks 2 special memories
Southgate says Ricky Villa’s solo goal for Tottenham in 2010 and Man Utd vs Arsenal are among his favourite final memories.
Southgate hails ‘united’ response to Russian aggression
Before he picks out the balls, Gareth Southgate hailed football’s ‘united response’ to Russia’s ‘unacceptable’ invasion of Russia.
Here we go…
The draw’s starting at Wembley, with Gareth Southgate shuffling the balls.
Crouch and you’ll miss it…
Moments ahead of tonight’s draw, here’s a flashback to one of the FA Cup’s most memorable ball-picking episodes.
Step forward, Peter Crouch.
Southgate getting ready…
Three Lions supremo Gareth Southgate is as smartly dressed as ever as he prepares for the 7.45pm FA Cup quarter-final draw at Wembley.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
