FA Cup Fourth Round Predictions, Picks, Odds
CHELSEA VS. PLYMOUTH ARGYLE
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 5
- Time: 7:30 a.m. ET
- Venue: Stamford Bridge
- Location: London, England
Score Prediction: Chelsea 4, Plymouth Argyle 1
Best Bet: Chelsea ML & BTS - Yes (13/8)
Chelsea should have few problems brushing aside League One Plymouth Argyle on Saturday but the Pilgrims could make their mark by scoring a goal at Stamford Bridge. In the last round against Chesterfield, when 5-0 up, the Blues ended the game with only one true recognized defender on the pitch, allowing their opponents to net a consolation goal.
Plymouth’s league campaign has faded after they led the division for much of August, but they are in great form in front of goal, scoring 12 in their last six games. They have, however, conceded ten in that time. After a fortnight without a game Chelsea, along with a lot of other Premier League clubs, are likely to go stronger than they usually would for this game, and they can win a high-scoring match.
WOLVES VS. NORWICH
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 5
- Time: 10:00 a.m. ET
- Venue: Molineux Stadium
- Location: Wolverhampton, England
Score Prediction: Wolves 2, Norwich 0
Best Bet: Wolves Win to Nil (8/5)
Wolves can aim for a good FA Cup run this year and they are solid favourites to knock out Norwich to reach the fifth round. Their good Premier League season has been based on an extremely solid defence - their record of 16 conceded from 21 is bettered only by Man City.
They have won four of their last five but will be wary of Norwich, who surprisingly now find themselves outside the relegation zone after beating Watford and Everton in their last two games. But their season is all about league survival and they are more likely to rest players than Wolves. At 8/5 a home win to nil looks the bet.
PETERBOROUGH UNITED VS. QUEENS PARK RANGERS
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 5
- Time: 10:00 a.m. ET
- Venue: Weston Homes Stadium
- Location: Peterborough, England
Score Prediction: QPR 3, Peterborough 1
Best Bet: QPR ML (21/20)
There is an all Championship affair at London Road but these sides are likely to be in different divisions next season. QPR are fourth in the Championship and would go second if they won their game in hand; Peterborough are third from bottom with only one point from their last five games.
They are likely facing relegation straight back to League One, especially since they sold their best player, Siriki Dembélé, on deadline day. The Hoops have won five of their last six and smashed Reading 4-0 last weekend. They may rotate, but then again so might Peterborough, so 21/20 on QPR looks a good bet.
TOTTENHAM VS. BRIGHTON
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 5
- Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
- Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
- Location: London, England
Score Prediction: Tottenham 1, Brighton 1
Best Bet: Draw (12/5)
Tottenham are as big as 10/11 to beat Brighton, which shows how much respect the Seagulls are receiving in the market nowadays. Spurs strengthened on deadline day with the signings of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur but also lost three midfielders in Gio Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele and Dele Alli and there are very few midfielders available to Antonio Conte for this match.
Brighton are probably too short to back at 10/3 but they are the Premier League’s draw specialists with an incredible 12 from 22 games. They have drawn 1-1 six times since the start of December. This should be a close game and at 12/5 yet another stalemate (in 90 minutes) looks likely.
NOTTINGHAM FOREST VS. LEICESTER
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 6
- Time: 11:00 a.m. ET
- Venue: The City Ground
- Location: Nottingham, England
Score Prediction: Nottingham Forest 2, Leicester 2
Best Bet: BTS - Yes (3/4)
Nottingham Forest deservedly knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup in the third round and were rewarded with a match against local rivals Leicester City, the first meeting between the clubs since Leicester’s promotion in 2014. Forest were disappointing in a 2-1 loss at Cardiff last time out but they had won their three games prior to that and are knocking on the door of the Championship play-offs.
Leicester are 1/1 favorites but their record of 37 conceded in 20 league games is alarming. Forest have plenty of good attacking options and both teams scoring looks great value at 3/4. In general this has all the ingredients of a really good cup tie.
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