Sheffield United vs Tottenham Hotspur

Bramall Lane is the venue as Sheffield United and Tottenham Hotspur battle it out for a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Sheffield United’s relentless pursuit of a top-two finish in the EFL Championship takes a quick rest following a hard-earned 1-0 home win over Watford last weekend. In addition to halting a two-game losing league streak and re-establishing a seven-point cushion in the top two, the ‘Blades’ have set themselves up nicely for this blockbuster tie. Bramall Lane has been a fortress recently, with Paul Heckingbottom’s registering as many as seven wins across their last eight competitive home outings (L1). That bodes well as they bid to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals for the third time in four years after netting eight goals in the opening two cup rounds. But to achieve that feat, Sheffield will have to defy a worrying run of five consecutive FA Cup eliminations to Premier League sides.

In the meantime, Tottenham Hotspur toppled bitter cross-town rivals Chelsea 2-0 at the weekend, taking advantage of Newcastle United’s League Cup duties to move four points clear of the fifth-placed ‘Magpies’ in the Premier League standings. With Antonio Conte still recovering from surgery, stand-in boss Christian Stellini will be looking to maintain a 100% win ratio across his four games in charge of ‘Spurs’ and lead them into the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 2017/18. Hellbent on ending a three-game losing streak in the competition’s round five, the Londonders can draw confidence from beating Sheffield in both Premier League H2Hs in 2020/21 by an aggregate score of 7-1, including a 3-1 win at this venue.