The FA Cup

By Nishant Joshi

Tottenham v Fulham



March 24th 19:45 GMT
ITV HD (19:30-22:00), ITV1 (19:30-22:00), Setanta Ireland (19:30-22:00)

Further to my series on Fulham earlier in the month, I feel it is only prudent to back them in the FA Cup as well as the Europa League. There certainly seems to be a theme of redemption this season for Fulham, after having knocked out both Shakhtar Donetsk and Juventus in Europe, with the latter being thrashed 4-1 in dramatic circumstances.

With Fulham in mid-table comfort, it certainly seems like Roy Hodgson rightly has his focus on the two cup competitions, and we should not shy away from backing them in the FA Cup too.

Tonight sees Fulham travel across London to Spurs, after a drab first-leg 0-0 at Craven Cottage. Fulham are starting to recover from their long-term injury list and suspensions, with Danny Murphy, Brede Hangeland and Clint Dempsey all likely to play tonight. With Bobby Zamora in exceptional form and a point to prove against his old club, I would certainly not back against Fulham getting through this fixture. Another low-scoring affair is on the cards, and I could see this being cagey enough for it to go as far as penalties and extra time.

The winner of this fixture will get a home tie against Portsmouth, followed by a Wembley final against either Aston Villa or Chelsea. Tottenham are available at 1.33 to qualify which seems remarkably short, so we'll take a punt on Fulham to qualify and also to win outright.

NJ's Bets:

Fulham to qualify - 4pts @ 3.55 (Bwin)

Fulham to win FA Cup - 2.5pts @ 15.0 (E/W, 1,2, 1/2) (Boylesports)

Nishant Joshi