FA Cup scores LIVE: Man City cruise through, Everton win Lampard’s first game and Chelsea survive scare

As mentioned before there are 12 cup fixtures taking place today starting with Chelsea vs Plymouth and Kidderminster vs West Ham kicking off at 12.30pm.

Then at 3pm we have: Crystal Palace vs Hartlepool, Everton vs Brentford, Huddersfield vs Barnsley, Man City vs Fulham, Peterborough vs QPR, Southampton vs Coventry, Stoke vs Wigan and Wolves vs Norwich

Cambridge host Luton for a 5.30pm kick off and closing out the day is an all Premier League clash between Tottenham and Brighton at 8pm.

Despite having used several Academy players in cup games this season Thomas Tuchel is preparing a strong squad for today’s FA Cup tie with League One side Plymouth Argyle.

He explained that decision by saying:

It is another event from FA Cup history that is almost unimaginable now. The last moments of the 1979 final may have been deflating for Manchester United, but the homecoming was anything but.

The team had come back from being 2-0 down as late as the 86th minute, to make it 2-2, only for Alan Sunderland to score a winner for Arsenal in the 89th. Not that you’d have guessed it from the scenes in Manchester.

It’s a sentiment that puts a different spin on some of the assessments of that era, that these Arsenal and United sides were mere “cup teams”.

These were the sides never quite consistent enough to win the league, but could be as good as anyone on any given day. It meant they were often involved and victorious on FA Cup final day.

That they all played with a verve and excitement – if also an erraticness – greatly added to their charm, and fitted with the folklore of the competition.

Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher spoke about the chance to face Chelsea in the FA Cup and he hopes his players can do the team ‘justice’. Schumacher says that he has a gameplan for the match but knows his side are the underdogs. He said:

David Moyes says his squad is ‘fresh’ for the today’s FA Cup tie at Kidderminster but there are a few players missing. West Ham are without Angelo Ogbonna who has a knee injury and Michail Antonio will miss the game after only arriving back in the UK on Thursday from international duty.

Saïd Benrahma is available again after representing Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations and a number of youngsters have been training with the first-team squad this week so could be in contention to start.

Chelsea are without number one goalkeeper Edouard Mendy who remains at the Africa Cup of Nations and manager Thomas Tuchel confirmed that the Blues were also without Ben Chilwell, Reece James and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

Thiago Silva and Christian Pulisic missed training and are doubts for the game as well.

Plymouth Argyle’s Brendan Galloway and George Cooper are long term injury concerns and on loan defender Romoney Crichlow is cup tied.

Steven Sessegnon could make his debut having arrived on loan from Fulham on deadline day and Adam Randell is in contention after coming through a concussion test.

Middlesbrough became the first team to make if into this season’s FA Cup fifth round after they defeated Manchester United in a penalty shootout last night.

There are 12 more cup ties today with two Premier League teams in action in the early kick offs. Chelsea host League One’s Plymouth Argyle at Stamford Bridge and national-league side Kidderminster Harriers welcome West Ham to the Aggborough Stadium.

Two potential giant killing clashes await but who will come out on top?

Manchester United are out of the FA Cup. Ralf Rangnick might argue that they should not be, both on the balance of play and the nature of the goal they conceded, but the only hope of silverware at Old Trafford this season is now the Champions League trophy and it would be a stretch to call that realistic. Middlesbrough are instead celebrating a famous victory and a place in the fifth round, won by a penalty shoot-out.

After 15 perfect spot-kicks, it was cruel that the decisive miss was Anthony Elanga’s, the teenager recently promoted to the first team by Rangnick and who has otherwise impressed. The blame for this early cup exit cannot be placed at his door, though. This was a collective failure.

United started brightly, missed a first half spot-kick through Cristiano Ronaldo and yet still led courtesy of a deflected Jadon Sancho strike. On the balance of play, Rangnick’s side really should have secured their place in Sunday’s fifth round draw inside the regulation. That they did not was due to a combination of poor finishing, questionable game management and controversial officiating.

Was Duncan Watmore’s touch before Matt Crooks’ equaliser handball? It seemed so, but referee Anthony Taylor considered it accidental, as did VAR. It was an odd goal but it did not need to be the turning point which it transpired to be. From then on, United lost a lot of their vigour. There was a point, perhaps, where they were even playing for penalties. Middlesbrough, meanwhile, dug in and made their luck.

Mark Critchley has the report from a shocked Old Trafford: