FA Cup Saturday Tips: Back a 9/2 Coventry upset plus 9/1 Fulham Bet Builder | OneFootball

English FA Cup

Frankly an upset is on the cards

Ste Tudor assesses the 3pm kick-offs in the FA Cup fourth round this Saturday and recommends his best bets for each tie...

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Coventry v Ipswich (15:00) - 'Upset' fancied at 9/2

Do Ipswich have the fortitude needed to put together a cup run? Distracted by a sapping relegation grind, they run the risk of being out-maneuvered this weekend by a Coventry side who have impressed of late.

The Sky Blues lost to Leeds in midweek but they're hardly alone there. Prior to that reality check, four consecutive wins - with just one goal conceded - suggests that Frank Lampard now knows his best team and structure two months into the job.

Their 3-5-2 set-up is bringing out some exceptional performances from Victor Torp in midfield while Jack Rudoni is thriving on the creative freedom it affords him. The 23-year-old has eight assists to his name this term, two in recent weeks.

Up front, meanwhile, Ellis Simms and Brandon Thomas-Asante are sharing out the goals in what is becoming a fruitful partnership.

Everton v Bournemouth (15:00) - Three times a maybe

The Cherries have already beaten Everton twice this season, the first in dramatic late circumstances at Goodison, the second less than a month ago.

That latter 1-0 victory proved to be Sean Dyche's last stand on Merseyside, sacked five days later, and given their improvement since it's fair to assume the visitors will have a much tougher task this time out.

With David Moyes giving his new players greater license to bomb on, Everton have recorded a notable win at Brighton and scored seven in 180 minutes at Goodison. It's worth highlighting that six of those seven - plus the winner on the South Coast - were converted before the break, as they make up for lost time.

Andoni Iraola made seven changes to his high-flying strongest XI when thrashing West Brom in the third round. He is unlikely to make as many alterations here and that brings Antoine Semenyo back into the reckoning, joining up with his attacking partners in crime, Kluivert and Ouattara.

Combined, this devastating trio have 35 goal involvements in the league alone. That's a goal or assist every 61 minutes. Of the three, Kluivert is the man in form, notching six in his last five outings.

Preston v Wycombe (15:00) - A cautionary tale

Preston have only lost twice at home all season and though seven of the other 13 have been drawn they remain a strong proposition at Deepdale. One failing that does need pointing out, however, is an inability to overturn deficits, not doing so on 12 occasions.

A relative lack of firepower partly explains Preston's problems. By contrast, Wycombe are League One's highest goalscorers. That brings BTTS into play at 4/5 especially as eight of Preston's last 10 contests have seen both teams on the scoresheet.

The Chairboys have been flying this term but the exit of Matt Bloomfield potentially throws a spanner into the works. This will be Mike Dodds' first game in charge and it's unknown as yet whether the opposite of a new manager bounce will take effect or if it's business as usual.

For now, the benefit of the doubt applies. Wycombe's output this season warrants that.

Southampton v Burnley (15:00) - 12/5 to back a bore

There's no two ways about it, the Clarets are boring their way back to the top. At the back, Scott Parker's side are watertight, conceding just nine times all season. That's a goal every five hours. Phenomenal.

Going forward they have secured wins by a single-goal margin on eight occasions. Five of their last eight contests have finished 0-0.

Despite inhabiting the top three for the majority of the campaign, Burnley have scored fewer goals than Watford in 12th and that makes it difficult to pick out key attacking personnel, though Josh Brownhill has been responsible for five match-winners. The midfielder is his team's leading goal-scorer with nine.

Can the struggling Saints disrupt this well-organized unit on home soil? They should at least be buoyed by securing only their second league win of the season last weekend. But in truth the visitors have kept much better attacks at bay since August. Burnley to win to nil therefore is a shout at 15/2.

Alternatively, the over/under market is worth exploring for this one.

Stoke v Cardiff (15:00) - Honours even

Neither team are strangers to a draw, Stoke sharing the spoils four times in their last six league outings. Cardiff have done likewise in their last seven. Another stalemate here, to add to their 2-2 back in December, offers up 23/10.

In that clash, Anwar El-Ghazi scored the Bluebird's opener and he appeals in the shots market, the winger taking on 2.9 attempts on goal per 90 this term. Alongside him, Callum Robinson is the visitor's main threat, converting every 136 minutes in 2024/25, from an impressive 54% shot accuracy.

By stark comparison, Stoke are now deprived of their chief goal-source, with Tom Cannon moving to Sheffield United. His replacement Ali Al-Hamadi is cup-tied and this alone tips the balance in Cardiff's favour.

That is, until we recall the last time Omer Riza's men crossed the border and received a seven-goal tonking at the hands of Leeds. That may done Cardiff psychological damage.

Only three Championship clubs have won more corners than Stoke this season. With Mark Robins recently preferring a 4-4-2 set-up - with one eye on producing plenty of crosses - that may be a pertinent consideration.

Wigan v Fulham (15:00) - Two good

The Latics have found it tough-going at the Brick Community Stadium in recent months, winning just two of their last nine, and even if they raise their game in front of a bumper crowd and against Premier League opposition, they have shown concerning limitations in League One.

Too often they concede first - 12 times all told - and each occasion has ended in defeat. They have the fourth worst chance conversion rate in the third tier. To exacerbate all this, their disciplinary record leaves a lot to be desired with 2.1 cautions per game.

It should be said that Fulham aren't exactly saintly either, but that aside they will be heading north optimistic of avoiding an upset, as well as making it three away wins on the bounce.

Raul Jimenez has fired five in seven. Both Alex Iwobi and Andreas Pereira are averaging 1.8 key passes per 90. They have more than enough quality up front to hurt a Wigan back-line that has kept only one clean sheet at home since the start of October.

A quirk leads us to potential profit. The Cottagers have scored twice seven times in their last 10 contests.

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