FOOTBALL | FA Cup 3rd Round Predictions & Stats

Think you can’t fit any more football in this festive season? Well prepare to loosen that belt by another notch because here comes one of the great weekends in football and to celebrate we offer up our FA Cup 3rd Round Predictions & Stats.

The FA Cup Third Round is where the Davids meet the Goliaths, and sometimes the Davids meet the not-so-Davids, and the Goliaths meet some other Goliaths. Essentially the top two divisions of English Football meet the best of the rest who have made it this far. Some from Round One, others from deep in the qualifying wilderness. Either way, there will be games featuring teams that Premier League loving can or can’t vaguely remember.

Some fans, like the teams themselves won’t care, sending out their second or third best efforts, but not at The Gurgler, we’re looking for the Cupsets where a team worth hundreds of millions has their pants pulled down by a team worth considerably less.

It sadly doesn’t happen as much as we’d hope, but regardless we are full of opinion, enthusiasm and bravado as we supply the 2023-24 edition of FA Cup 3rd Round Predictions & Stats.

FA Cup 3rd Round Fixtures

FA Cup 3rd Round Predictions & Stats

THURSDAY 8:00PM

Prediction – Crystal Palace 2 Everton 1
Stats – Everton are unbeaten in three midweek fixtures at Crystal Palace (W1 D2).

FRIDAY 7:30PM – 8:15PM

Prediction – Brentford 0 Wolves 2
Stats – Wolves are unbeaten on their last five trips to Brentford (W3 D2) including one game on Dec 27. Brentford are one of three teams to have not won a game in the Premier League this season against Midlands clubs. The other two are midlands clubs Aston Villa and this weekend opponents Wolves.

Prediction – Fulham 4 Rotherham 0
Stats – Fulham have scored the second equal most goals v bottom six opponents at home in the Premier League this season. Fulham (W14 D7 L3) have a decent record at home to Rotherham in the lower divisions. Rotherham have won just one of their last 14 in the Championship and sit last on the table.

Prediction – Spurs 4 Burnley 2
Stats – Spurs have won their last four home games to Burnley to nil. Spurs (W10 D1) are unbeaten in their last 11 games at home to Burnley whose last win came in 1983 in the League Cup.

SATURDAY 12:30PM – 12:45PM

Prediction – Millwall 1 Leicester 1
Stats – Millwall have won three in a row at home to Leicester in the FA Cup. Leicester (W10 D2 L1) have lost just once away this season in the Championship.

Prediction – AFC Wimbledon 1 Ipswich Town 1
Stats – Last season was the first time Ipswich had made it past the third round since 2010. Both Wimbledon and Ipswich have won an FA Cup. 

Prediction – Maidstone 1 Stevenage 1
Stats – Maidstone are unbeaten v Stevenage in the FA Cup. Maidstone are currently fourth in the sixth tier National League South. Stevenage are a strong seventh in the third tier League One.

Prediction – Coventry 1 Oxford 0
Stats – Coventry have won 6/7 home games v Oxford. They have only lost the most recent fixture in 2019. Despite lying 10th in the Championship, Coventry have only lost once at home this season (W5 D7 L1). 

Prediction – Sunderland 1 Newcastle 3
Stats – Newcastle have only won once in their last eight visits to Sunderland (W1 D3 L4). The home side (either team) have won just the one match in the seven FA Cup meetings between these sides.

SATURDAY 3:00PM

Prediction – Stoke 0 Brighton 5
Stats – Stoke have lost just four of the 22 matches v Brighton at home. Stoke (D4 L2) are winless in their last six home matches in the Championship.

Prediction – QPR 0 Bournemouth 2
Stats – QPR are last for home form this season with just two wins in 12 matches in the Championship. QPR have won the only FA Cup clash between these sides in 1967. Bournemouth are second for last six game form and last six away form in the Premier League.

Prediction – Blackburn 3 Cambridge 0
Stats – Blackburn have won all eight home games v Cambridge.

Prediction – Gillingham 1 Shefield Utd 0 – CUPSET
Stats – Sheffield Utd have scored just five goals in ten away games this season in the Premier League. Gillingham have won both of their most recent games 1-0.

Prediction – Eastleigh 0 Newport 2
Stats – This is the third time that Non League Eastleigh have made the FA Cup 3rd Round. They have made it through qualifying rounds for the past four seasons. Newport (W2 D4) are unbeaten in their last six home games.

Prediction – Southampton 4 Walsall 0
Stats – Southampton are unbeaten in their last 18 Championship games. The Saints have also won seven in a row at home. Walsall won their last away game in League Two by 6-1.

Prediction – Bristol Rovers 2 Norwich 1 – CUPSET
Stats – Norwich have lost just one of their last 11 home games v Bristol Rovers. The away team has never won an FA Cup game between these two teams (L2 D2). Bristol Rovers are unbeaten in nine home games in League One. Bristol Rovers last made in past the third round of the FA Cup in 2008 when they made the Quarter Final.

Prediction – Hull 2 Birmingham 0
Stats – The away side (either team) has won the last three matches between these sides and the only FA Cup game between these teams in 1955.Wayne Rooney was manager of Birmingham. Birmingham have won just one of their last 11 away games in the Championship (L9 D1 W1)

Prediction – Watford 1 Chesterfield 2 – CUPSET
Stats – Watford have lost just one of their seven home games v Chesterfield (W4 D2 L1). Watford are winless in their last four home games in the Championship (D2 L2). Chesterfield are top of the National League Premier (5th Tier) and have won 20/25 games this season. Their games have seen 94 goals in the 25 games this season – scoring 61.

PLYMOUTH ARGYLE v SUTTON UNITED

No H2H Record

Prediction – Plymouth 2 Sutton 0
Stats – Plymouth are unbeaten in their last seven home games in the Championship. Sutton are last for away form in League Two with one win in 12 games (W1 D2 L9).

SATURDAY 5:30PM

Prediction – Chelsea 3 Preston 0
Stats – Chelsea (W3 D1) have never lost to Preston in the FA Cup. Preston last beat Chelsea at Chelsea in 1958 – nine games ago. 

Prediction – Sheffield Wednesday 1 Cardiff 1
Stats – Cardiff have won the last two games v Sheffield Wednesday by 2-1. Sheffield Wednesday have climbed out of the Championship relegation with a run of three home wins from their last four matches.

Prediction – Middlesbrough 0 Aston Villa 2
Stats – Middlesbrough have a poor recent record at home to Aston Villa – L6 D1 – and have only scored one goal in two of those matches.

SWANSEA CITY v MORECAMBE

No H2H Record

Prediction – Swansea City 0 Morecambe 0
Stats – This is the third time in four seasons that Morecambe have made the FA Cup 3rd Round. Not bad going for a team that has never been higher than the third tier. They have never made it past the third round since their first try in 1921.

SUNDAY 2:00PM

Prediction – West Ham 3 Bristol City 0
Stats – West Ham are unbeaten v Bristol City in the FA Cup. West Ham have lost just once at home to Bristol City in 16 games (W13 D2 L1).

Prediction – Luton 0 Bolton 2 – Cupset
Stats – Bolton (W2 D1) are unbeaten in three FA Cup games v Luton at Luton.

Prediction – Man City 5 Huddersfield 0
Stats – Manchester City‘s market value according to TransferMarkt is a full Billion Euros more than Huddersfield. 

Prediction – Peterborough 2 Leeds 1 – Cupset
Stats – Leeds have won four of the last five games at Peterborough. Leeds have lost their last three away games in the Championship. Peterborough have lost just one of their last 18 games and are unbeaten in their last ten games at home and averaging three goals a game at home in their last six matches.

Prediction – Shrewsbury 0 Wrexham 1
Stats – Third tier Shrewsbury come into this game on a four-game losing streak and have scored at a rate of less than a goal per game at home this season and are second worst for goals scored overall in League One. Wrexham are sitting third in the fourth tier but their 11 goals in 12 away games is exactly the same as Shrewsbury’s home scoring feats. 

Prediction – Nottingham Forest 4 Blackpool 1
Stats – The last game between these sides was in the third round of the FA Cup last year where Blackpool secured a big win over a side in the Premier League. 13 goals in the past three games between these sides too. The last two seasons Nottingham Forest were in the Premier League they lost in the 3rd Round. Blackpool have made the fourth round of the FA Cup in two of the last three seasons.

WEST BROMWICH ALBION v ALDERSHOT

No H2H Record

Prediction – West Brom 3 Aldershot 0
Stats – Aldershot are the only team not to draw a game away from home in the National League Premier this season. West Brom have won five of their last seven games in the Championship including wins over three of the current top seven sides.

SUNDAY 4:30PM

Prediction – Arsenal 2 Liverpool 1
Stats – Arsenal have won both of the clashes in the FA Cup v Liverpool on a Sunday.

MONDAY 8:15PM

Prediction – Wigan 0 Man Utd 3
Stats – Manchester Utd lead the H2H by 18-1. This is the first time since 2015 that Man Utd haven’t played their FA Cup 3rd Round game at home. Pity, Man Utd have won all 11 home games v Wigan scoring 38 and conceding one. Man Utd are winless in their last four away games in the Premier League.