The remaining 16 teams in the FA Cup in England will do battle in the freezing temperatures sweeping across the country this weekend starting with the Foxes against Sheffield United on Friday Night with a whole host of edge-of-the-seat fixtures to follow right up to and including Manchester City’s trip to Wigan on Monday.
Full FA Cup Fifth Round fixtures:
Friday, February 16th
Leicester vs Sheffield United
Chelsea vs Hull City
Saturday, February 17th
Sheffield Wednesday vs Swansea
West Brom vs Southampton
Brighton vs Coventry
Huddersfield vs Man United
Sunday, February 18th
Rochdale vs Tottenham
Monday, February 19th
Wigan vs Man City
Chelsea vs Hull City
The Tigers are just one point and one place above the relegation zone in the English Championship in 2017/18 after making the drop down from the Premier League following a disastrous season last time out and are in real danger of falling further into the depths of the lower leagues. They make their way to Stamford Bridge in Friday’s other fixture to take on a Chelsea side who have beaten them in eight of their ten Premier League meetings, drawing two, since Hull first won promotion in 2008. Current Blues captain Gary Cahill was on the scoresheet the last time the pair faced, in a 2-0 win at the Bridge on their way to the league crown.
West Bromwich Albion vs Southampton
Southampton ended a run of 12 league games without victory the last time they visited the Hawthorns, only a fortnight ago in a game that will be remembered for honouring the life of the late Baggies striker Cyrille Regis. West Brom are currently rooted to the bottom of the Premier League, six points behind Southampton in 18
th who themselves are still a point from safety. Alan Pardew’s men surprisingly saw off Liverpool 3-2 in the last round and will be hoping to now exact some revenge and reach the last eight against a Saints side who have now won the last three-in-a-row against them.
Huddersfield Town vs Manchester United
Terriers fans will fondly remember the 2-1 win over Mourinho’s Manchester United when they welcomed them to the John Smith Stadium in October and manager David Wagner will be hoping for a repeat performance from his players on Saturday. They ended a five-match losing run in the league when they beat Bournemouth 4-1 last weekend to lift them out of the relegation zone, while United’s defeat at Newcastle was their second in three games following defeat at Tottenham at the end of January. Alexis Sanchez scored his first goal for the Red Devils in a 2-0 win over Huddersfield at Old Trafford just two weeks ago.
Rochdale vs Tottenham Hotspur
The lowest ranked side left in this season’s competition, Rochdale, are currently rock-bottom in League One with just five wins from their 28 league games. They will be looking to pull off arguably one of the biggest upsets in the tournament's history when they welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the Spotland Stadium on Sunday for their first-ever meeting against the Premier League giants. South African defender Kgosi Ntlhe currently plies his trade for the Manchester-based side and will be relishing his opportunity to rub shoulders with the likes of Kane, Eriksen and company.
Wigan Athletic vs Manchester City
Currently sitting second in League One with a game in hand, 2013 FA Cup Champions Wigan Athletic will welcome the side they defeated in that epic final at Wembley, Premier League leaders Manchester City to the DW Stadium for the first time in six years. The Latics have proven to be somewhat of a bogey side for Man City in recent seasons in the FA Cup. They followed up that impressive victory in the final in 2013 by beating them once more at the Etihad in the quarter-finals in 2014 to reach the semi-finals for the second time in as many seasons.