The FA Cup third round takes place over this weekend with all the English Premier League teams now entering the competition.
Despite it being the first round of the competition in which the top division sides enter, some have been unlucky enough to be drawn against each other with the most notable seeing Arsenal host Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium.
With the FA Cup third round hosting 32 games across the next few days, we’ve picked out our top tips and booking codes for the upcoming action:
Newcastle United to win, 1.75
Sunderland vs Newcastle United
One of the standout fixtures in the third round of the FA Cup will see Sunderland and Newcastle United renew their rivalry with the long-awaited return of the Tyne-Wear derby after not meeting since 2016.
Newcastle United undoubtedly come into this game as the favourites as they currently sit 17 places above Sunderland in the football pyramid.
However, it is unlikely to be an easy game for Newcastle with Sunderland currently in much better form than their rivals since the arrival of new boss Michael Beale, picking up seven points from their last three games. On the other hand, Newcastle have lost seven of their last eight games in all competitions while they have also lost all four of their last FA Cup games, including shock defeats to Cambridge United and Sheffield Wednesday in the previous two seasons.
Sunderland will also take confidence from their record in the most recent Tyne-Wear derby games as the Black Cats are currently unbeaten in the last nine meetings between the two sides. But with Newcastle now a UEFA Champions League side and Sunderland still down in the EFL Championship, we expect the tides to turn and Newcastle to take the victory in this one.
Arsenal to win, 2.03
Arsenal come into this game in rather poor form as they ended 2023 with just one win in their last five matches, including two back-to-back losses in their last two games. In comparison, Liverpool are unbeaten in the last five games which includes a phenomenal 4-2 victory over Newcastle on New Year’s Day where they created 7.27xG – this being the highest xG total since records began in 2010/11.
While the two sides may be in polar opposite form coming into this game it is bound to be a close encounter with them drawing both their matchups in 2023.
However, Liverpool will be missing star man Mohamed Salah for the game due to his involvement in AFCON and this will unquestionably give Arsenal further hope of taking the victory. We agree with this and believe that Arsenal will end their poor run of form and get a win in their first game of the New Year.
Manchester City to win & over 4.5 goals, 1.98
Manchester City vs Huddersfield Town
Reigning champions Manchester City will be looking to begin their FA Cup title defence in a better manner than they are currently mounting in the Premier League, as they sit five points behind Liverpool and haven’t looked at their best at any point so far this season.
Despite this, they are huge favourites in this game against a Huddersfield side who are 21st in the Championship with just two wins in their last 14 games. 44 goals conceded in their 26 league games leaves them with the fourth worst defensive record of any side in the league. With The Terriers facing up against the highest scorers in the Premier League, we expect this one to end with a lot of goals in Man City’s favour, and potentially a similar scoreline to the 6-1 result Huddersfield suffered the last time they visited the Etihad Stadium.
Top Booking Code: 5YT9DDY (odds: 7.03)
Underdog Booking Code: 5YT7WZH (QPR, Stoke, Gillingham to win: odds 191.52)
