FA Cup 3rd Round: 6 Biggest Battles to Watch Out For

The first football weekend of 2013 sees the FA Cup roar back into action.

The oldest and most prestigious domestic cup competition in the world has lost some of its lustre since the advent of the Champions League in 1992. However, there can be little doubt that players and fans alike still dream about winning the famous cup.

While this weekend sees the beginning of the competition for many fans, the FA Cup actually started all the way back on August 11. A whopping 758 clubs started out on the Road to Wembley in August, and some eight rounds later, we are left with just 64 as the third round begins.

Chelsea will begin the defence of their title with a tricky game at Southampton, while Hastings, the lowest-ranked team in the competition, travel almost the entire length of England to take on Middlesbrough.

If this were a different competition, Chelsea as holders and the probable No.1-ranked team would play Hastings, the undoubted 64th-ranked side.

But this is the FA Cup, where rankings and reputations matter not. 

As ever there are a number of stand-out games ranging from all-Premier League ties, veritable giant-killing missions and non-league heroes on a crusade for fame, fortune and a place in football folklore history.

Here, Bleacher Report looks at six of the biggest battles of the FA Cup Third Round.

Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Newcastle United

This might not look like a grudge match on paper but Newcastle trek to Brighton with nothing but revenge on their mind.

Last season the Seagulls knocked out the mighty Magpies in the fourth round after Mike Williamson deflected Will Buckley's 76th-minute shot over Tim Krul into the net.

Alan Pardew's side dominated the game but struggled to find a way past Peter Brezovan in the Brighton goal without Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba. The two strikers were both on African Nations duty for Senegal.

The result was a major shock as Newcastle were flying high in the Premier League at the time and playing some of the best football in England. This season the story couldn't be more different.

Senegal were disqualified from competing in the 2013 African Nations so Cisse will be available, while Ba looks likely to be missing with a move to Chelsea nearing completion, Pardew told the BBC.

The Magpies will need all the players they can muster against Brighton because this time they travel to the Falmer Stadium on the back of a horrendous run of results and dreadful form.

Brighton used the win last season to great effect and only lost two of their next 14 games. Gus Poyet's side may have only lost six games this season and are perfectly placed for an assault on the play-offs. However, they have only won once from their last six, and that was in their last game away to struggling Ipswich Town.

Neither club is in good form. Both will be hoping that a good result and performance will boost their fragile confidence. In this we can see the importance of the FA Cup, as even a simple third-round victory can provide such an upsurge in confidence that entire seasons can be turned around. Pardew and Poyet will be banking on it.

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Coventry City

In 1987 Tottenham Hotspur and Coventry City played out one of greatest FA Cup finals of all time.

In the end, Spurs captain Gary Mabbutt's 95th-minute own goal sent the trophy to Coventry, but the game will always be best remembered for Keith Houchen's stunning 62nd-minute diving header.

Roll on some 26 years later and the two clash again in the FA Cup for only the fourth time. Spurs have the upper hand having won on two of those occasions, but obviously that matters little as the Sky Blues won the game that really mattered.

When the two sides met in the '87 final Spurs had just finished the season in third behind Liverpool and champions Everton, while Coventry finished a respectable 10th.

This season Spurs are once again in the hunt for third, but Coventry are no longer the top-flight power they once were. Currently ninth in League One, the Sky Blues are chasing promotion back to the Championship and have only lost four times in their last 22 matches.

Ex-Manchester United legend Mark Robins is their current manager and will be hoping for a slice of FA Cup luck when his team travel to White Hart Lane. 

Robins is the man credited with saving Sir Alex Ferguson's job, as in the third round in 1990 he came off the bench to save Manchester United against Nottingham Forest. Had United lost that match, it is widely accepted now that Ferguson would have been sacked.

One weird little bit of trivia that may twist the wheels of faith in the Sky Blues' direction is that 2013 is the first year since 1987 to have four different digits. 

Come Saturday, Mark Robins will be hoping that some FA Cup luck favours both he and Coventry once again, as they'll need all the luck they can get.

Mansfield Town vs. Liverpool

When non-league Mansfield Town were given a home draw in the FA Cup, they really couldn't have hoped for a bigger club to come out next than last season's beaten finalists Liverpool.

Field Mill, now known as the One Call Stadium, will be packed to its 7,500 capacity when Brendan Rodgers' team come to town.

The Stags are one of just three non-league teams in the competition and have had to battle hard to get this far. They beat Workington in the fourth round of qualifying before besting Slough in the first round on penalties after a replay.

They then beat Lincoln 2-1 after yet another replay in round two to claim their right to face the likes of Liverpool who only enter the competition in round three.

As ever, the non-league team will be hoping that the heavens open and that the pitch is about as unplayable as possible when the Reds arrive. They will be hoping Rodgers takes them for granted and rests a number of their more important players, as well as getting that special slice of luck that is always needed when playing top-quality opposition.

Form wise, Mansfield are currently ninth in the Blue Square Premier League, one league below League Two, but they have only lost five times from their last 25 matches since the start of the season. That includes their current run of just one loss from 12.

They are nobody's fools despite their lower standing than Liverpool and the Reds will have to do everything right and take their opponents seriously if they are to progress without problems.

It is possible, however, that a perfect storm of certain situations may arise to make Liverpool's progress to the next round much harder than it should be.

The Stags will obviously be psyched up and have nothing to lose. The Reds will have played, and beaten, Sunderland just four days prior to the FA Cup game and then face the prospect of playing Manchester United at Old Trafford just one week later. With that upcoming game in mind, Rodgers might just rest certain players, like Luis Suarez.

Liverpool should win, but if they go out with a good attitude they could become the third round's biggest casualty.

And if Mansfield needed any more motivation to face Liverpool they need only think back to 1970-71 when Dudley Roberts had a late goal controversially disallowed in a 0-0 draw in the League Cup. Liverpool won the replay 3-2 and still haven't been forgiven.

Crawley Town vs. Reading

Crawley Town were founded in 1896. However, in real football terms they are new blood because they were only promoted to league football in 2011.

Since then, on the back of some serious financing, they have won promotion from League Two to League One and have enjoyed considerable success in the FA Cup.

Since 2010 they have beaten Bury, Redbridge, Bristol City, Hull City, Swindon Town, Derby County, Torquay United in the FA Cup, and have only been beaten by Premiership opposition in Manchester United and Stoke City.

The Red Devils of Crawley famously lost to the Red Devils of Manchester 1-0 at Old Trafford in 2011 and in no way did they disgrace themselves. If truth be known they deserved a replay at the very least after dominating the closing period of the game and missing some gilt-edged chances.

Last season a professional and efficient Stoke side won 2-0 at the Broadfield Stadium. However, Crawley gave as good as they got for long periods, before bowing out at the fifth-round stage for the second year in a row.

Now they face Premiership opposition yet again, but this time it is in the form of the team with the worst defensive record in the league, Reading.

After a good start to the season, Crawley's form has dropped off and they now sit in eighth place, just outside the playoffs.

Reading, on the other hand, have never been given the chance in a cut-throat Premier League to build some good form and are odds-on favourites for relegation. The Royals have only won two games from 21 and have conceded a worrying 40 goals.

Knowing they are almost guaranteed relegation, the short 69-mile trip to Crawley has all the makings of a derby match for Brian McDermott's side.

Reading need a good result badly. The solace from a Premier League relegation battle that only an FA Cup run can bring is massive motivation for the Royals, but the Red Devils have a growing reputation they will want to protect. 

One of the results to look out for come Saturday.

Crystal Palace vs. Stoke City

Crystal Palace takes on Stoke City in perhaps the most intriguing game of the entire third round.

The Potters surrendered the longest unbeaten run in the Premier League (10 games) to Manchester City last weekend and will see this trip to Palace as the ideal way to get back on track.

They will know only too well though that Palace will be used to playing against teams with a physical style and presence, so the Tony Pulis' side will have to change their approach slightly.

Palace have played some of the best football in the Championship this term and currently sit in third position, but much of the credit must go to their previous manager Dougie Freedman. The club legend had Palace purring before he upped sticks and left for Bolton in October and was eventually replaced by Ian Holloway.

Ollie has only been in charge for 13 games, but significantly they have only lost twice since he took over.

While all eyes look to be focused on the seemingly Premier League-bound Wilfred Zaha, the undoubted star of the team this season is striker Glenn Murray.

The 29-year-old journeyman has scored 22 goals in 22 games this term and is in the form of his life under Holloway, scoring 14 goals since the ex-Blackpool boss took over. Palace have also netted 50 goals this term, the most in the Championship.

Stoke will have their work cut out for them at Selhurst Park and more than one Premier League have fallen there over the years. They will be buoyed by the fact that they have one of the tightest defences in Premier League. 

The contrast between the two sides could not be greater. Stoke have one of the oldest squads in the Premier League with only one player under the age of 24 a regular, Steven N'Zonzi.

The Potters play a direct physical game and close down the opposition incredibly quickly with Jonathan Walters setting the tempo for the rest of the team. Stoke also possess the second-best defensive record in the Premier League and have only conceded 20 goals.

Palace are almost the complete opposite and have no less than six players under the age of 24 as regulars. They play a swift counter-attacking style and often feature wingers as they stretch the opposition. Crystal Palace are also the highest-scoring team in the Championship with 50 goals from 26 games.

Crystal Palace v Stoke City has all the ingredients one could want from an FA Cup tie and the only real shame is that it isn't coming later in the competition. 

Swansea City vs. Arsenal

Unusually for the third round there are a large number of all-Premier League ties. Southampton take on Chelsea, Manchester United trek to West Ham and West Bromwich Albion face QPR in a battle of the acronyms, but the biggest tie of the entire round is without doubt Arsenal's trip to the Liberty Stadium to take on Swansea City.

Swansea versus Arsenal is one of the growing rivalries in the Premier League. Both clubs play football the right way with the right attitude, but in recent times the newly promoted side seem to have taken the Arsenal way to another level, despite their meagre finances.

Currently six points separate the two teams in the Premier League with Arsenal in sixth on 34 points and Swansea in ninth.

However, despite that small gap, Swansea have the upper hand in the battle of the football-philosophers as they have won the last two games between the clubs.

Most recently, Swansea won 2-0 at the Emirates with two late goals from Michu, but the real story of that particular game was how they out-Arsenaled Arsenal.

Realistically, the FA Cup is the only trophy Arsenal has a chance of winning this season. However, given Arsene Wenger's comments in October that the FA Cup is fourth on the Gunners' list of priorities, this might just tip the balance in Swansea's favour.

Over the next six weeks, before they face Bayern Munich in the Champions League Round of 16, Arsenal face Manchester City, Chelsea, West Ham, Liverpool, Stoke City and Sunderland.

Wenger may want to build momentum for the Bayern match, but with the speed-bumps that are City, Chelsea and Liverpool they might be better off focusing on the far more winnable games of West Ham, Stoke and Sunderland.

If that is the case, Wenger might just risk dropping a few key players to give them a valuable week's rest after a busy Christmas period.

Swansea, on the other hand, have a very real chance of going well in both domestic cups. They face Chelsea in the first of a two-legged semi-final in the Capital One Cup just three days after they take on the Gunners, so the temptation will be there for both managers to rest players.

Given the way both teams play, this game could very well rest on the respective managers, Arsene Wenger and Michael Laudrup. It will be more than interesting to see which one blinks first in this high-stakes game of Texas Hold’em.

Full FA Cup 3rd Round Draw

FA Cup Third Round Draw:

	Brighton & Hove Albion	v.			Newcastle United	‎
	Middlesbrough	v.			Hastings United	‎
	Nottingham Forest	v.			Oldham Athletic	‎
	Manchester City	v.			Watford	‎
	Crawley Town	v.			Reading	‎
	Sheffield Wednesday	v.			MK Dons	‎
	Bolton Wanderers	v.			Sunderland	‎
	Leeds United	v.			Birmingham City	‎
	Crystal Palace	v.			Stoke City
	Blackburn Rovers	v.			Bristol City	‎
	Luton Town	v.			Wolverhampton	‎
	Macclesfield Town	v.			Cardiff City	‎
	Charlton Athletic	v.			Huddersfield Town	‎
	Aldershot Town	v.			Rotherham United	‎
	Fulham	v.			Blackpool
	Peterborough United	v.			Norwich City	‎
	Leicester City	v.			Burton Albion	‎
	Oxford United	v.			Sheffield United	‎
	Barnsley	v.			Burnley	‎
	Aston Villa	v.			Ipswich Town	‎
	Wigan Athletic	v.			Bournemouth	‎
	Southampton	v.			Chelsea	‎
	Millwall	v.			Preston North End	‎
	Tottenham Hotspur	v.			Coventry City	‎
	Southend United	v.			Brentford	‎
	Hull City	v.			Leyton Orient	‎
	Queens Park Rangers	v.			West Bromwich Albion	‎
	Derby County	v.			Tranmere Rovers	‎
	West Ham United	v.			Manchester United	‎
	Swansea City	v.			Arsenal	‎
	Mansfield Town	v.			Liverpool	‎
	Cheltenham Town	v.			Everton	‎

Statistics provided by www.thefa.com, www.premierleague.com

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