FA Cup predictions with 16/1 outright tip
An Arsenal supporter and occasional match-goer, Liam has been involved in football journalism for a number of years and joined the Spotlight Sports Group in 2018. He is studying for a degree in German and Spanish, can speak French too and is particularly interested in the Bundesliga and La Liga.
The third round of the FA Cup takes place this weekend as teams from the Premier League enter the competition.
Manchester City are the defending champions, but our tipster has avoided the big guns and picked out an outside option as a potential winner.
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FA Cup Preview & Prediction
The FA Cup formed the second leg of Manchester City’s sensational treble last season but Pep Guardiola’s side have looked less assured this term.
City have found it hard enough keeping up in the Premier League title race and the cup holders may have a tougher time of it challenging on all fronts this time around.
Market leaders City and Arsenal will likely be engaged in a fierce title battle in the coming months and both are also through to the knockout rounds of the Champions League, so this competition could be lower on their list of priorities.
The performances of last season’s defeated finalists Manchester United do little to inspire confidence that they can go one better.
As well as floundering in the Premier League, United were thrashed 3-0 by Newcastle in the EFL Cup and finished bottom of their Champions League section.
Liverpool’s focus will also be on the Premier League title race and a third-round tie with 14-time champions Arsenal clearly means backing the Reds comes with immediate risk.
Both Tottenham and Newcastle may have eyes on Wembley glory but the pair have been far too inconsistent and neither side reached the quarter-finals of last season’s competition.
So, at 16/1, it is Brighton who make the most outright appeal.
The Seagulls were semi-finalists last season, losing out to Manchester United on penalties at Wembley, and the fact they have fallen off the pace in the Premier League could be a blessing in disguise.
Brighton also have the Europa League to manage in the latter stages of the season but they were impressive in the competition’s group stage, topping a group composed of Marseille, Ajax and AEK Athens.
Roberto de Zerbi has done a brilliant job since taking over from Graham Potter with his intelligent tactical set-up, and Albion are unlikely to overlook the FA Cup given their hopes of making the top five in the Premier League are fading fast.
The Seagulls can beat anyone on their day, as evidenced by their 4-2 win over Tottenham in their final game of 2023, and while their third-round clash with Stoke could be tricky, it could certainly be much worse.
Brighton have never lifted the famous old trophy but they came incredibly close to making the final last season and could go a step further this time around.
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