FA Cup Preview: Mansfield dares Arsenal, can Wrexham stop Chelsea?

FA Cup 5th round preview: Mansfield vs Arsenal, Wrexham vs Chelsea, Man City vs Newcastle – quadruple hopes alive for Gunners & City.

Mansfield will take belief and grit to the game against Arsenal. Will the League 1 side shock the Premier League log leaders on Saturday? (Photo credit: BBC)

The English FA Cup takes centre stage again this weekend, with Liverpool already booking a place in the quarter-final after a dominant 3-1 win over Wolves at the Molineux on Friday night.

It’s important to note that Wolves beat Liverpool on the same ground earlier in the week; that result set Liverpool back in the race for Champions League football. However, a rotated side by Arne Slot left nothing to chance as they dismissed Wolves in the second half of the game.

There’s an intriguing one on Saturday. Giant-killers Mansfield will host Premier League log leaders, with the League 1 side seeking the scalp of another Premier League team. Mansfield dumped out holders Crystal Palace from the competition and came from behind to beat Burnley in the 4th round.

Arsenal is on course for an unprecedented quadruple. It’s going to be an incredible feat should Mikel Arteta and his boys go ahead and achieve it, but they must take things one game at a time. This is what is in front of them; they must not be complacent.

Many first-team players were missing from the training session on Friday as expected, with youngsters expected to dominate the lineup at Mansfield; however, Arsenal must bring in experience to avoid the biggest shock of the competition.

The Yankees, Wrexham, will host Chelsea on Saturday. The rise of Wrexham is something that excites everyone in the world of football, and the Championship side can take things a notch higher with a strong performance against the Blues on Sunday.

The Yankees will become the first team to gain five promotions in five years if they go on to claim a Premier League ticket at the end of the season. Wrexham currently sits in sixth in the Championship and is on course for a playoff place in May.

Chelsea cannot afford to allow the hosts to dominate the game. Chelsea played well at Aston Villa in midweek to put the disappointment of the Arsenal game behind them. The FA Cup represents a realistic opportunity for Liam Rosenior to win a trophy this season. How will he fare against Wrexham on Saturday?

Finally, on Saturday, title contenders Manchester City will travel to Newcastle for what would be their fourth meeting this season. The Magpies beat Manchester United despite being reduced to ten men in midweek and will hope to complete the Manchester double in a matter of days on Saturday.

Nottingham Forest came back from behind twice to earn a draw at the Etihad in midweek, a result that has now put Manchester City’s title hopes in jeopardy. Pep Guardiola knows that the FA Cup is his brightest opportunity to win something this season; a quadruple is still on the cards, but he will fancy this one first.