FA Cup Fourth Round Friday Preview | OneFootball

Alliteration aside, Friday the 13th will see two outstanding fixtures as the FA Cup enters the fourth round. Will the accurséd day spell doom for the lone Premier League side? All we can guarantee is that at least one Championship team will prevail, though whether that club will be English or Welsh remains to be seen.

Hull City vs. Chelsea

Chelsea skipper Liam Rosenior knows all about Hull. I’ve heard a story, but cannot confirm its accuracy, that his grandmother was a Hull season ticket holder.

He appeared in 161 matches for the Tigers between 2010 and 2015, his longest spell at any club during his playing career. After transitioning to management, and spending some time at Brighton and Derby County, Rosenior returned to take his first head coaching appointment with the club in November 2022. On Friday he’ll return once again, this time at the helm of a heavily favored Chelsea side. 

Chelsea Look to Bounce

Not that Chelsea are perfect. After taking a 2-0 lead into the 60th minute against Leeds United on Tuesday, the Blues allowed the visitors to draw level. Fan vitriol was directed at young defender Josh Acheampong, though to be fair the entire back line needed a good tongue-lashing after a dreadful display of ineptitude.

Cole Palmer, who hit from the penalty spot but somehow managed to bottle it from seven feet away, should be chastised as well.

How Rosenior approaches this match will be interesting. He was sacked from Hull for refusing to commit to “attacking football,” so does he look up at the chairman’s box with a nod and a wink and put João Pedro, Estévão and Enzo Fernandez up top? Will he start Palmer, or force the 23 year-old to watch from the bench? Does he give the beleaguered center back pairing of Acheampong and Chalobah a shot at redemption? Or does Wesley Fofana get the call? 

Hull City have never beaten Chelsea; their best result is a single draw in the last ten meetings. With five straight wins after New Year’s Day, their form has cooled with a 0-0 draw to Watford and 3-2 loss to Bristol. Still, they’re very much in the promotion race sitting fourth on 54 points.

If they hope to return to the top flight, these types of fixtures will become commonplace. What a delicious opportunity to put everything out there before the home supporters, knowing that you have a full week of recovery.

Wrexham vs. Ipswich Town

After narrowly advancing out of Round 3 over Nottingham Forest during the penalty shootout, Wrexham now face fellow Championship side Ipswich Town. These two sides are locked into the promotion fight with 17 matches to play. Wrexham sit sixth after their weekend loss to Millwall; Ipswich are third. Their first and only meeting back in November ended in a 0-0 draw. They will play each other again in eight days time, which makes this fixture an intriguing precursor. I don’t expect either manager to take half-measures.

Wrexham will look to their attacking tandem of Keiffer Moore (left) and Josh Windass to get them on the scoreboard early. The pair have contributed 24 of the team’s 44 goals this season. But the Welsh club really needed their defense to shore up, after conceding seven in their past five matches. If it gets to a shootout, Arthur Okonkwo is the man you want between the sticks. He correctly picked all five sides against Forest, and blocked the final shot for the win.

Ipswich Town are, fairly, the more dangerous side. Their attack is carried by a trifecta of midfielders, led by Jack Clarke, all of whom have registered 11 or more contributions. The recent transfer of Anis Mehmeti from Bristol will give them additional firepower. The Albanian striker is still looking for his first Ipswich goal. This varied threat should nullify any attempt by the hosts to neutralize a single attack. Watching how the Tractor Boys move the ball should be fun. The defense has ten clean sheets.