Match Preview
Fulham versus Newcastle United
FA Cup Fourth Round 23/24 at Craven Cottage
Saturday 27th January 2024 KO: 19:00
Referee:
Jarred Gillett (Australia)
Live on ITV4 and ITVX
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Fulham will endeavour to earn a slice of knockout redemption on Saturday, when Newcastle United arrive at Craven Cottage for their FA Cup fourth-round affair.
The Cottagers required just the one goal to edge past Rotherham United in the third round, whereas Eddie Howe's troops put three past Tyne-Wear rivals Sunderland without reply.
Despite blowing a one-goal lead to comeback kings Liverpool in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final, the writing was not on the wall for Fulham ahead of Wednesday's second leg, but Luis Diaz's deflected strike made the Cottagers' uphill climb that little bit steeper.
Fulham number one Bernd Leno would not have wanted to watch Diaz's goal back - the ex-Arsenal man ought to have done much better at his near post - but an erstwhile Liverpool attacker briefly got his goalkeeper out of jail in the second period, as Harry Wilson set up Issa Diop for the hosts' equaliser on the night.
Another 15 minutes was not enough for Marco Silva's team to force an additional 30, though, as they missed out on an all-West London final with Chelsea next month, but the Cottagers - still without a major trophy in their 145-year history - remain in contention for FA Cup stardom.
A strong XI made hard work of their third-round tie with a defence-heavy Rotherham crop, although Bobby Decordova-Reid's first-half strike sufficed as Fulham reached the fourth round for the fifth year running, but they have only progressed from one of their past four ties at this stage.
That triumph did come in the 2022-23 campaign, where they were eliminated in a fiery quarter-final with Manchester United after a fourth-round beating of Sunderland, who coincidentally fell to the supremacy of Saturday's visitors to Craven Cottage in this season's third phase.
Even though Newcastle possess European aspirations while their Tyne-Wear rivals Sunderland compete in the Championship doldrums, animosity remains highly prevalent between the two North-East adversaries, who renewed acquaintances at the Stadium of Light on January 6.
Magpies head coach Howe had overseen four successive losses in all tournaments ahead of the third-round affair, but thanks to a brace from Alexander Isak and an opening own goal from Daniel Ballard, Newcastle earned the bragging rights and a spot in round four without breaking too much of a sweat.
The visitors were on the verge of following up that derby delight with a statement victory over Manchester City, only to fall victim to a mesmerising Kevin De Bruyne cameo in a 3-2 Premier League loss, leaving them in the obscurity of 10th place in the top-flight table.
However, sending Sunderland packing meant that Newcastle snapped a miserable sequence of three successive third-round exits, but they have only advanced past round four once in the last 18 years, ironically bowing to Man City's superiority in a 2-0 defeat in the 2019-20 quarter-finals.
The Magpies are also at risk of setting an unwanted FA Cup record this weekend - they could become the first Premier League team to lose eight in a row against fellow top-flight sides in the competition - but their most recent Premier League victory was also a routine 3-0 beating of hosts Fulham on December 16.
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There has been an average of six goals per game scored in the previous FA Cup ties between Fulham and Newcastle (24 goals in four games). In the entire history of the FA Cup from the first round onwards, the only fixture that has seen more goals per game (minimum four matches) is Aston Villa v Wednesbury Old Athletic (8.8, 35 goals in four games in the 1880s).
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Fulham have lost all four of their FA Cup matches against Newcastle United, with those coming between 1908 and 1961. They also conceded at least four goals in every defeat.
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Fulham reached the FA Cup fifth round last season, eliminating Sunderland in the fourth round. They have not progressed from the fourth round in consecutive seasons since doing so in three in a row between 2008-09 and 2010-11.
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Newcastle United have lost their past seven FA Cup matches against Premier League opposition, all while as a top-flight side themselves. No top-tier team has ever lost eight consecutive FA Cup matches against fellow top-flight sides, with Liverpool (1932-46) and Charlton (1955-2003) also losing seven in a row.
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Eddie Howe has never won an FA Cup match against a Premier League opponent in nine previous attempts (D1 L8), with this his first such match as Newcastle boss. The previous nine games were as Burnley manager (L2) and at Bournemouth (D1 L6).
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Source Ben Knapton at SportsMole/BBCSports