FA Cup 2014: Chelsea join City, Liverpool, Arsenal in fifth round

Chelsea were poor in front of the goal on Sunday afternoon and didn’t manage to score a goal from open play, but they never looked like conceding after Oscar put them ahead with a free kick in the 27th minute. Stoke were overrun throughout the game and struggled to create chances, falling 1-0 to the Blues.

Chelsea: Schwarzer, Cole, David Luiz, Cahill, Ivanovic, Lampard, Matic, Hazard, Oscar (Willian 81’), Schürrle (Ramires 70’), Eto’o (Ba 85’)

Ten-man Sheffield United held Fulham 1-1 at Bramall Lane in their fourth-round FA Cup tie, forcing a replay at Craven Cottage after some distinctly miserable football in equally miserable conditions.

As befits an awful Premier League team playing a weakened squad meeting an awful League One team on an awful pitch, the first half was awful. The first incident of any note saw John Arne Riise withdrawn with a hamstring injury, and it took a long time for things to get any better for Fulham.

Stevenage injuries and suspensions

Out: Steve Arnold. In doubt: Dean Parrett (knee), Filipe Morais (dead leg), François Zoko.

The Cherries are down in 16th in the second-tier at the moment, having not won in their last four. Though form often goes out of the window in cup games, an upset at Dean Court is unlikely -- despite Eddie Howe having no early injury concerns.

Bournemouth injuries and suspensions

Depending on your perspective, the fourth round is either where the FA Cup begins to get interesting or where it begins to become a significantly less compelling contest. The majority of the true minnows have already been eliminated, and with the Premier League sides joining up in the previous round the potential for shocking upsets has taken quite a hit; though opportunities for lower-league sides to functionally change the nature of their existence still exist, but they’re much fewer in number.

Still, for the “casual” football fan (with pains being taken to point out that “casual” is a relative term) there’s a great deal of intrigue here. For the biggest clubs it’s a rare opportunity to throw the kids out into the fray without much concern for the consequences, while there are still plenty of smaller clubs in the mix to keep things fresh.