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⚽ Ten things to look out for in the FA Cup | And email Niall Howe adds: “We would love to have a Cup run. Our attitude won’t change, we want to try and win the next game and that is Aston Villa. It is a tough draw, a competition we want to do well in, and we want to go as far as we can. ” The Newcastle manager delivered the Carabao Cup trophy last year but his FA Cup record with the Magpies is not so good – suffering first-round exits to Cambridge and Sheffield Wednesday, a quarter-final loss to Manchester City in 2024, and a fifth-round home defeat to Brighton last year. Eddie Howe has just held his Newcastle press conference, with his team going to Villa Park on Saturday evening. He says the midweek win at Spurs “definitely helped the feeling and the mood around the training ground. It was a big win for us but now we have to try and back that up, we are searching for consistency. ” One of the many highlights in Barney Ronay’s read on Sir Jim Ratcliffe … Manchester United are being misused. For all the corporate gloss, United’s real power lies in their congealed but enduring status as a community object, a big tent, a place for all-comers. Their co-owner has no business using this carefully stitched thing to spread his political counter-messages. The city of Manchester is also being misrepresented. The line Ratcliffe is parroting is at odds with the city’s spirit, its football clubs, its sporting culture. Manchester is a port city built on generations of incomers. It’s a mixed-up muddled-up multipack of people bumping up against each other. Its energy is open, mix-and-match, outward-looking. Brentford striker Igor Thiago has signed a new contract, extending his deal until 2031, with the option for an additional 12 months. The Brazilian was signed from Club Brugge in February 2024, but had to overcome a knee injury last season before hitting form this term, scoring 17 Premier League goals so far. “I love the club and the people in the club, ” said Thiago. “It’s a true love, a real love. When the fans support me, and I see them singing my name and singing my song, it gives me more power. It’s been a great season for us. Everybody has been on the same page. I hope we can get something special from it. ” Slot is asked where the FA Cup sits among his priorities for the season – he puts it on an equal footing with competing in this year’s Champions League, and ensuring qualification for next season. He also praises Brighton, who knocked Manchester United out in the third round but are in a bad run of form – “we have a lot in common; they are so much better than their league position suggests. ” Slot adds that Wataru Endo will be out for “quite a long time” after suffering a serious injury while filling in at right-back at the Stadium of Light. “We don’t expect a positive outcome. We have to wait and see. We expect not to have him for quite a long time. ” “That is not the first time with our right full-backs, ” adds Slot, who is without Conor Bradley and Jérémie Frimpong. Dominik Szoboszlai could return after missing the Sunderland game due to suspension. Liverpool host Brighton on Saturday evening, and Arne Slot says he’ll be keeping a close eye on training in order to make “the best possible decision” on the strength of his line-up. Liverpool have played Man City and Sunderland in the last six days, but will have a week’s break before going to Nottingham Forest next Sunday. Liverpool manager Arne Slot is the first top-flight manager facing the media this morning – his press conference is under way now. We’ll also hear from Eddie Howe (9. 30am GMT), Mikel Arteta (12pm), Pep Guardiola (12. 30pm), Rob Edwards (1pm), Marco Silva, Régis Le Bris, Scott Parker (all 1. 30pm), Unai Emery (2pm) and Daniel Farke (2. 15pm). Over in Spain, Atlético Madrid are closing on their first Copa del Rey final appearance for 13 years after thrashing Barcelona in the first leg of their semi-final. Sid Lowe saw it all: And here’s the fourth-round fixture list … Friday (7. 45pm GMT)Hull City v Chelsea

Wrexham v Ipswich Saturday (3pm unless stated)

Burton Albion v West Ham (12. 15pm)

Burnley v Mansfield

Manchester City v Salford City

Norwich v West Brom

Port Vale v Bristol City

Southampton v Leicester

Aston Villa v Newcastle (5. 45pm)

Liverpool v Brighton (8pm) Sunday (2pm unless stated)

Birmingham v Leeds (12pm)

Grimsby v Wolves (1. 30pm)

Oxford United v Sunderland

Stoke City v Fulham

Arsenal v Wigan (4. 30pm) Monday (7. 30pm)

Macclesfield v Brentford Here’s what to look out for in the FA Cup’s four-day, fourth-round weekend … Another grand old club currently without a manager are Blackburn Rovers. BBC Sport and others are reporting that Michael O’Neill is set to take over at Ewood Park – but will also continue in his Northern Ireland role for the World Cup playoffs, and this summer’s finals if they qualify. Blackburn’s current interim manager is the former Northern Ireland international Damien Johnson, and he will reportedly stay on as part of O’Neill’s coaching staff. Rovers sacked Valérien Ismaël on 2 February, with the club mired in the Championship relegation zone. Hello. The first domestic football match I ever saw on live TV was in 1991 – the FA Cup final between Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur. Two historic clubs led by long-serving managers Brian Clough and Terry Venables, who walked out at Wembley holding hands. Jumpers for goalposts, isn’t it? Marvellous. Spurs won the Cup but Venables was soon moved upstairs by Alan Sugar, so maybe managerial turmoil is nothing new. But it’s still sad to see the current state of affairs at both of these storied clubs, who both dispensed with their managers earlier this week. Relegation is a real threat for two teams who really should be nowhere near trouble, and nobody is 100% sure who to blame. Forest are lining up Vítor Pereira, the Premier League’s new Winston Wolf, to replace Sean Dyche, while Spurs didn’t appear to have anyone in mind to replace Thomas Frank. We’ll keep track of developments and look ahead to a busy FA Cup fourth-weekend – although Tottenham and Forest are helpfully both already out, freeing up time for their recruitment searches.