The best and worst of this weekend’s FA Cup schedule

The fourth round of the FA Cup takes place this weekend, and with 16 matches taking place this weekend, there’s plenty of action to watch all around. There weren’t a lot of upsets in the third round, though most notably non-League Chorley was able to get past EFL Championship side Derby County in an unlikely 2-0 win. Let’s have a look at what’s happening this weekend as the tournament closes in on the later rounds.

The entire slate will be available for streaming on ESPN+.

Best of FA Cup Fourth Round

Manchester United v. Liverpool

Sunday, January 24, 12:00p.m. ET
Watch on ESPN+

This will be a surprise to nobody being categorized as the best of the fourth round, as Premier League giants Manchester United face off against Liverpool, another giant Premier League club. These two went head-to-head last week in EPL play and ended up in a 0-0 draw. Liverpool, who were at the top of the EPL table for five weeks in a row, have now fallen to fourth place after going winless in their last four outings. Manchester, on the other hand, have made a miraculous turnaround in league play climbing the table from 16th place all the way to first. It helps when they’ve gone 12 straight unbeaten, dominating the majority of the teams they’ve come up against. Now these two sides will meet once again, each with hopes of advancing to the next round. Liverpool will of course be without Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez who are both out with long-term injuries, while Diogo Jota, Naby Keita, and Kostas Tsimikas will all likely miss this match as well.

Worst of FA Cup Fourth Round

Millwall v. Bristol City

Saturday, January 23, 10:00a.m. ET
Watch on ESPN+

In one of the only matches that sees two Championship sides go head-to-head, Millwall will take a break from their poor form in league play to attempt an advancement in the FA Cup against Bristol City. Millwall made their way past non-League side Boreham Wood in the third round with a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Kenneth Zohore and Shaun Hutchinson. Now they’ll turn their focus to Bristol City, who sneaked past Portsmouth in the third round with a 2-1 win as Chris Martin banged in an 83rd-minute game-winning goal. The odds are in Bristol’s favor, but Millwall will hope to leverage their home pitch advantage to shut down the Robins’ attack just enough to squeak out a win. I’d expect a low scoring affair, and the chances of either team surviving beyond the fifth round are somewhat slim as they’ll likely come up against a Premier League team.

FA Cup Fourth Round Sleeper

Chorley v. Wolverhampton Wanderers

Friday, January 22, 2:45p.m. ET
Watch on ESPN+

Chorley is proving to be “the little engine that could,” as the non-League side (sixth-tier National League North) will play host to Premier League club Wolverhampton. Wolves have found themselves struggling in league play, going winless in their last six as they fall to 14th in the Premier League table. They sneaked past fellow EPL side Crystal Palace in the third round of FA Cup play, but just barely by a 1-0 score thanks to a 35th-minute goal from Adama Traore. Chorley, on the other hand, absolutely dominated Derby County in their third round 2-0 win, outshooting the visitors 19-2 overall and controlling 55% of possession. Chorley, while the heavy underdogs, have momentum on their side as they continue their Cinderella run, and the world’s eyes will be on their game this weekend to see if they can pull off some more magic and advance to the fifth round.

Fourth round proper full schedule

All times listed are Eastern. All games will be streamed on ESPN+ in the United States.

Friday, January 22

2:45 p.m. — Chorley v. Wolverhampton Wanderers

Saturday, January 23

7:15 a.m. — Southampton v. Arsenal
10 a.m. — Barnsley v. Norwich City
10 a.m. — Brighton & Hove Albion v. Blackpool
10 a.m. — Millwall v. Bristol City
10 a.m. — Sheffield United v. Plymouth Argyle
10 a.m. — Swansea City v. Nottingham Forest
10 a.m. — West Ham United v. Doncaster Rovers
12:30 p.m. — Cheltenham Town v. Manchester City

Sunday, January 24

7 a.m. — Chelsea v. Luton Town
9:30 a.m. — Brentford v. Leicester City
9:30 a.m. — Fulham v. Burnley
12 p.m. — Manchester United v. Liverpool
3 p.m. — Everton v. Sheffield Wednesday

Monday, January 25

2:45 p.m. — Wycombe Wanderers v. Tottenham Hotspur

Tuesday, January 26

2:45 p.m. — AFC Bournemouth v. Crawley Town