Holders Manchester City visit Championship club Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday and Joe Townsend anticipates a comfortable win.
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Sheffield Wednesday v Manchester City
- Wednesday, March 4 – 1945 GMT kick-off on BBC One
Even without taking current form into consideration, of all eight fifth-round ties this stands out as the match with the most inevitable outcome, given the vast difference in quality between Manchester City and Sheffield Wednesday.
Add to that City’s incredible domestic cup record under Pep Guardiola - they have won the Carabao Cup three times and the FA Cup once since the Spaniard took charge in 2016.
Throw into the mix the fact that the Owls have slipped from third to 12th in the Sky Bet Championship table following a run of just one league win in 13 matches, with seven of those games at home, while City have responded to defeats by Manchester United and Tottenham by winning consecutive Premier League games, beating Real Madrid away in the Champions League and lifting a third straight Carabao Cup at Wembley and it really is difficult to make the case for a shock.
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Most teams who take on higher-division opposition would undoubtedly want to play on their own patch but Garry Monk has been unable to make Hillsborough even close to a fortress, winning just five times in 16 home matches as Wednesday boss. His side will need a fair slice of fortune to even push City close.
Perhaps they will take solace from Lady Luck’s decision to shine on then-Sky Bet League One Wigan in the 2018 fourth round.
City, who had Fabian Delph sent off late in the first half, had 82% possession, 15 corners to Wigan’s none and 12 shots to the Latics’ three but were defeated by a late Will Grigg goal following a Kyle Walker defensive howler. Wednesday can hope.
Expect a very strong City XI to line up in South Yorkshire too – Guardiola’s decision to mix his side up for Sunday's Carabao Cup final means Kevin De Bruyne, Gabriel Jesus, Bernardo Silva and Riyad Mahrez are all likely to step up from their roles on the bench at Wembley.
Score prediction: Sheffield Wednesday 0-3 Manchester City (Sky Bet odds: 13/2)
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Sheffield Wednesday vs Manchester City – Opta stats
- Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their last 11 meetings with Man City in all competitions (D4 L7) since a 3-1 win at Maine Road in a Premier League match in November 1993
- Manchester City have progressed from all four of their previous FA Cup ties against Sheffield Wednesday, most recently in January 2015 (2-1 at the Etihad)
- This is the second season in a row Sheffield Wednesday are facing the holders of the FA Cup, losing 0-3 at Chelsea last term
- Sheffield Wednesday’s 1-0 win against Brighton in round three ended a run of 15 consecutive FA Cup eliminations at the hands of Premier League sides for the Owls
- Man City have won their last five FA Cup games against sides from a lower division, scoring 22 goals in the process. Their last such defeat came at this stage in 2017-18, with Pep Guardiola’s side losing 0-1 at Wigan
- Man City’s Gabriel Jesus has had a hand in 11 goals in his eight FA Cup appearances (7 goals, 4 assists), including six in his last three (5 goals, 1 assist)
Odds correct at 1700 GMT on 03/03/20
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