FA Cup more open than in past seasons

In previous years the so called ‘big four’ have nominated the FA Cup. Portsmouth won the competition in 2008 with a 1-0 victory over Cardiff at Wembley. However that final was a rare occasion that saw two teams not out of the big four appear in the final.

Important

The FA Cup may have lost some of its glamour in recent years but the big teams still want to win the trophy. That’s why they have dominated the competition in recent years.

Holders Chelsea have taken the competition more seriously than most, as the celebrations from last season’s FA Cup final victory over Everton proved.

Out

Liverpool and Manchester United made shock exits at the third round stage of the cup this season. They were both victims of lower league giantkillers. Both clubs took their ties seriously but didn’t play well enough against their lower league opponents.

I’m sure both Sir Alex Ferguson and Rafa Benitez would love to still be in the cup, especially the Spaniard. Arsenal didn’t take the cups seriously enough and fielded a team of youngsters against Stoke in the fourth round and were punished.

Underdogs

This year’s FA Cup has been full of shocks. Reading winning at Liverpool was extraordinary and Leeds victory at Old Trafford was also superb. Reading are still in the competition after a home draw with West Brom yesterday.

Could they pull off another shock and make it to the quarter-final? You never know with the Royals. If they defeat West Brom in the replay they face will face either Crystal Palace or Aston Villa in the next round.

Crystal Palace themselves have been giantkillers after beating Premier League Wolves in the last round. They were just a few minutes from definitely being in the quarter-finals before Villa’s Stiliyan Petrov scored an equaliser.

Outsiders

Before the competition started I don’t think the fans of Birmingham, Fulham and Portsmouth would even have thought that they could win the FA Cup. Yet all three teams are in the quarter-finals, just two wins away from the FA Cup final.

With Chelsea drawing Manchester City or Stoke, the other teams in the competition have a good chance of making the final or winning the trophy.  Birmingham have had a superb season and it would be nice to see a side like them win the trophy. Rather than one of the usual boring big four sides claiming the trophy.

It would prove a major tonic for crisis club Portsmouth to progress even further in the cup. However there are doubts that the South Coast club will even be in existence by the time the next round takes place. If they do survive and make the FA Cup final it would be exactly what the Pompey fans deserve. They have been superb this season, even when their side have put in some awful displays.

Fulham boss Roy Hodgson is one of the most underrated bosses in England and a cup victory would give him and his hardworking team some tangible reward for all their hardwork at the Craven Cottage.

Favourites

Even after draws in the fifth round the likes of Aston Villa and Tottenham must be considered amongst the favourites for the trophy. Villa survived a big scare at Crystal Palace but I can’t see them slipping up again at Villa Park.

Tottenham should be too strong for Bolton at White Hart Lane. However Bolton are not always an easy side to beat and Tottenham have struggled at home at times. Their form has also been patchy recently.

Predictable

As much as I’d like to see two of the smaller clubs in the FA Cup final, I don’t believe Chelsea will be stopped in the competition this season. I can Chelsea playing Aston Villa or Tottenham in the final and claiming their second consecutive FA Cup victory.