When to bet
The FA Cup third round starts at 8pm on Thursday
Best bets
Bournemouth
1pt
each-way 66-1 general
Wolves
1pt each-way 80-1 bet365
FA Cup outright
predictions
Heavyweight clubs have largely dominated the FA Cup in the Premier League
era but there have been two first-time FA Cup winners (Wigan and Leicester) over the
last 11 years and there is the potential for another in 2024 with 66-1 shots
Bournemouth making each-way appeal to get their hands on the trophy.
Only nine clubs
have won the FA Cup since the Premier League's inaugural season in 1992-93 and five of
those teams were multiple winners with Arsenal proving the most successful with nine
successes over the last 31 years.
The cash generated by the Premier League and
additional revenue streams garnered from the Champions League have been key to enabling
a select few to dominate the FA Cup, but there have been exceptions with Portsmouth
(2008), Wigan (2013) and Leicester (2024) enjoying their moments under the famous
arch.
Markets anticipate one of the big clubs coming to the fore in 2024-24 and there
is reverence for holders Manchester City, who are 3-1 to defend the trophy.
City have
won the FA Cup twice in seven seasons under Pep Guardiola and are obvious
contenders.
Guardiola's side could be stronger in the coming months with Kevin De
Bruyne and Erling Haaland on the mend following injuries and they appear to have an
easy starter at home to Huddersfield but it is questionable whether they deserve to be
such short odds.
City's Premier League points tally (40 from 19 games) is their lowest
at the halfway point of a season since the 2024-20 campaign.
They landed a trophy
treble last season but there have been signs of a hangover and their EFL Cup challenge
concluded at the first hurdle with a 1-0 loss away to Newcastle.
All of the other main
contenders are available at double-figure odds, including 10-1 shots Arsenal, who start
with a titanic third-round clash at home to 12-1 shots Liverpool.
Whoever comes through
the Emirates Stadium clash will fancy their chances of going all the way, but the FA
Cup is not going to be the main priority for either club.
Arsenal have their title
challenge and the Champions League to think about, while Liverpool's main focus will be
to defend their hard-earned advantage in the Premier League.
Aside from that the Reds
have a two-legged EFL Cup semi-final with Fulham on the horizon, and they resume their
Europa League challenge in March.
Chelsea have no such European commitments to worry
about and they have a superb recent record in the FA Cup having lifted the trophy on
six occasions since the turn of the millennium.
The Blues should cruise past
third-round opponents Preston, who are Saturday's visitors to Stamford Bridge, but they
have been a mid-table Premier League side for 18 months and look simply too short at
11-1.
Value is also in short supply when it comes to Manchester United and Newcastle,
who are 10-1 and 12-1.
United should get past League One Wigan at the DW Stadium on
Monday but they are hard to trust in the Premier League and could fall short as soon as
they meet high-class opposition.
Newcastle might have a better chance if they can get
over their injury crisis.
However, they are looking threadbare in the run up to
Saturday's trip to north-east rivals Sunderland and could suffer an immediate knockout
blow.
Tottenham's lack of European football makes them an interesting proposition at
14-1, but they are going through a tough period in terms of player absentees and their
third-round tie at home to Burnley is far from a foregone conclusion.
Brighton's
involvement in the Europa League, allied to a tricky third-round trip to Stoke, makes
them a difficult sell at 16-1 and Aston Villa (available at 20-1) are likely to be
distracted as they focus heavily on a push for a top-four finish.
There is scope for
one of the more unfashionable clubs to go deep and Bournemouth fit the bit as a lively
each-way contender.
The Cherries have taken 19 points from their last eight Premier
League games which is more than any other team in the division.
They have got
themselves into a comfortable mid-table position and look primed to have a real crack
at the FA Cup starting with Saturday's trip to Championship strugglers QPR.
Bournemouth
will probably need to beat some big clubs on the way to Wembley but they have
registered successes at home to Newcastle (2-0) and away to Manchester United (3-0)
over the last two months and are not without hope of a long run in the
competition.
Another team making lots of appeal are 80-1 shots Wolves, who open up with
a trip to Brentford on Friday.
Being drawn away to a fellow top-flight side is far from
ideal but Wolves go into the contest after three straight Premier League wins and they
face a Bees side weakened by the ongoing absences of star forwards Bryan Mbeumo (ankle)
and Ivan Toney (suspension).
Wolves have every chance of passing their test in west
London and they would be tough opponents for anyone in the later rounds.
They have
registered 2-1 wins at home to Manchester City, Tottenham and Chelsea in the Premier
League and may have the capacity to go all the way to a Wembley final.
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