FA Cup scores, schedule, where to watch: Everton, Fulham advance; Man United vs. Arsenal to come on Sunday

One of the most storied competitions in English soccer is intensifying as Premier League teams enter the FA Cup for the third round beginning on Thursday. In the 144th edition of the tournament, Manchester United will look to repeat as champions but with a tough first-round fixture against Arsenal, that will be a challenge. Something different from previous editions is that replays are gone. Previously, if a match finished in a draw, a rematch would take place at the opposing team’s stadium then going to extra time and penalties if needed. Now, with the increasing pressure on the fixture calendar, they’ve been removed from the first round onward.

If a game ends in a draw there will now be two extra time periods followed by a penalty shootout to determine who goes on to the next round.

FA Cup schedule and scores

All times Eastern, and all games available on ESPN+

Thursday, Jan. 9
Sheffield United 0, Cardiff City 1 
Fulham 4, Watford 1
Everton 2, Peterborough 0

Friday, Jan. 10
Wycombe vs. Portsmouth, 2:45 p.m.
Aston Villa vs. West Ham United, 3 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 11
Bristol City vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers, 7 a.m.
Middlesbrough vs. Blackburn Rovers, 7 a.m.
Birmingham City vs. Lincoln City, 7 a.m.
Liverpool vs. Accrington Stanley, 7:15 a.m.
Leicester City vs. QPR, 9 a.m.
Nottingham Forest vs. Luton Town, 10 a.m.
Brentford vs. Plymouth Argyle, 10 a.m.
Chelsea vs. Morecambe, 10 a.m.
Bournemouth vs. West Brom, 10 a.m.
Norwich City vs. Brighton, 10 a.m.
Preston North End vs. Charlton, 10 a.m.
Reading vs. Burnley, 10 a.m.
Exeter City vs. Oxford United, 10 a.m.
Sunderland vs. Stoke City, 10 a.m.
Leeds United vs. Harrogate Town, 12:45 p.m.
Manchester City vs. Salford City, 12:45 p.m.
Leyton Orient vs. Derby County, 1 p.m.
Coventry City vs. Sheffield Wednesday, 1 p.m.
Mansfield Town vs. Wigan Athletic, 1 p.m.

Sunday, Jan. 12
Hull City vs. Doncaster Rovers, 7 a.m.
Tamworth vs. Tottenham, 7:30 a.m.
Newcastle United vs. Bromley, 10 a.m.
Ipswich Town vs. Bristol Rovers, 10 a.m.
Arsenal vs. Manchester United, 10 a.m.
Crystal Palace vs. Stockport Untied, 10 a.m.
Southampton vs. Swansea, 11:30 a.m.

Monday, Jan 13
Millwall vs. Dagenham & Redbridge, 2:30 p.m.

A managerial debut 

When West Ham United take the pitch against Aston Villa, things will be a little different with Graham Potter taking the reigns following Julen Lopetegui being let go. Usually, Premier League teams would prefer to face each other later in the competition but for Potter, it’s a great chance to test his players against top opposition with minimal consequences. While the Hammers would love to win this game, losing in cup play is better than dropping more points in the Premier League. Facing a top team like Aston Villa, there’s no better challenge to kick things off.

Upset watch?

Looking for the biggest fixture of the round. it’s likely Arsenal facing Manchester United. After already losing to Newcastle United in the EFL Cup and directing some of their poor finishing at a “tricky” ball, the Gunners will play with yet another unique ball when facing the Red Devils. Mitre has created a ball to celebrate United winning the last edition of the tournament which will be used for this match. With United needing any victory, they’ll hope that Arsenal’s finishing isn’t up to par to snag an upset.

Time to get back on track

With Liverpool and Chelsea, both are going through small blips in their impressive seasons. But in the FA Cup, they’ll be facing Accrington Stanley and Morecambe, respectively. There are matches where they’ll likely rotate and play younger players in the squad but they’re still moments that can help build momentum. Liverpool have now failed to pick up maximum points in two consecutive matches which for most teams wouldn’t be a crisis, but when the Reds had gone 24 matches without losing, the victories are expected. For Chelsea, things are a bit more worrisome, failing to win four straight and losing two of those. Being able to change that form around will be critical to staying in the title race.