FA Cup round-up: Grimsby knock out Southampton, Sheffield United beat Tottenham
Sky Bet League Two side Grimsby and Championship Sheffield United caused a huge upsets by beating Premier League Southampton and Tottenham respectively.
Southampton 1-2 Grimsby
Gavan Holohan converted two penalties as League Two side Grimsby dumped Premier League strugglers Southampton out of the FA Cup with a shock 2-1 win at St Mary’s.
Midfielder Holohan capitalised on moments of madness from Saints pair Lyanco and Duje Caleta-Car to fire the Mariners into the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time since the Second World War.
Croatia defender Caleta-Car atoned for his mistake by halving the deficit for the top-flight’s bottom club with 25 minutes to go.
But the 1976 FA Cup winners could not prevent another major setback of a miserable season as they crashed out at the hands of the lowest-ranked side remaining in the tournament.
Southampton substitute Theo Walcott thought he had equalised 10 minutes from time, only to be deemed offside following a VAR review, before the stunned hosts were loudly booed off.
Sheffield United 1-0 Tottenham
Tottenham were dumped out of the FA Cup by Championship opposition for the second year in a row after Iliman Ndiaye fired Sheffield United to a 1-0 fifth-round win at Bramall Lane.
Exactly one year ago to the day since they were beaten by the same scoreline at Middlesbrough, Spurs again succumbed to a team in the division below them after a limp display in South Yorkshire.
After starting Harry Kane on the bench, they fell behind to Ndiaye’s 79th-minute opener and could not find a way back into the game.
Defeat means another chance of ending their 15-year trophy drought goes up in smoke and they exit the premier domestic cup competition at this stage for the fourth successive year.
With Antonio Conte still out of the country as he recovers from gall bladder surgery, the manager will evade some of the flak for this defeat but, with his future still up in the air, the pressure is mounting on him ahead of a crunch period in the Premier League and Champions League.
It was a glorious night for the Blades, who reached the last eight for the third time in four years and they are now one win away from Wembley, which is supplementing their promotion campaign in the Championship.
Manchester United 3-1 West Ham
Alejandro Garnacho inspired Manchester United to a late comeback win against West Ham as Erik ten Hag’s men sealed progress to the FA Cup quarter-finals three days on from their Carabao Cup triumph.
Sunday’s 2-0 victory against Newcastle secured the Old Trafford giants’ first silverware since 2017 but the manager’s immediate message to his players was “get back to work”.
United looked set to be brought back down to earth with a bump after Said Benrahma put David Moyes’ West Ham into a deserved lead at Old Trafford.
But Nayef Aguerd’s 77th-minute own goal sparked an impressive turnaround, with teenager Garnacho’s superb 90th-minute effort followed by a stoppage-time strike by Fred in a 3-1 triumph.
There was sense of relief among the delighted celebrations as Ten Hag’s men progressed from the fifth-round tie despite a shaky performance, keeping their hopes of a quadruple alive.
Burnley 1-0 Fleetwood
Championship leaders Burnley needed a 90th-minute goal from Connor Roberts to edge out the 10 men of League One Fleetwood 1-0 and advance to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup for the first time in 20 years.
Vincent Kompany’s side played with an extra man for more than 45 minutes after Cian Hayes saw red in first-half stoppage time, but were in danger of being taken to extra time by a Fleetwood side who showed why they had come into this match on the back of four straight clean sheets.
When the goal did come it was harsh on visiting goalkeeper Jay Lynch, who made fine saves from Halil Dervisoglu and Charlie Taylor in quick succession only to be beaten from close range as Roberts’ flick diverted Vitinho’s shot through a crowded area into the net.
It was reward for a Burnley performance that had seen them dominate possession all night and register 31 attempts at goal against a side playing in the fifth round for the first time.