The draw for the FA Cup 3rd Round was made yesterday and there are a number of interesting ties to look forward to next month.
This is what I thought of the draw.
The tie of the round is without a doubt Arsenal taking on holders Man United because of the size of both clubs and the history of the fixture. The fixture might not be as big as it once was, but it is still a big game because of the history they both have when facing one another.
The biggest shock of the round could come from non-league Tamworth who will face Spurs at home. Their fans will be massively up for this game, and if they were to pull it off, it would arguably be the biggest shock in FA Cup history.
We could also have big shocks coming from three clubs in League 2 in Bromley, Morecambe and Salford. Bromley will be facing Newcastle, Morecambe will be up against Chelsea whilst Salford face last seasons runners-up Man City. These shocks will be gigantic if these sides were to pull them off.
Four clubs in League 1 have the chance to cause an upset as well in Accrington Stanley, Peterborough, Bristol Rovers and Stockport County. Accrington Stanley have the toughest tie out of all them as they'll be facing Liverpool at Anfield, which would of course be one massive shock if they were to pull it off. Meanwhile, Peterbrough will be facing Everton, Bristol Rovers, will be facing Ipswich and Stockport will be facing Crystal Palace.
We could have shocks coming from Championship sides as well in Swansea, Norwich, Bristol City, West Brom, QPR, Plymouth, Luton and Watford. Swansea will be reunited with former manager Russell Martin as they face Southampton, Norwich will be facing Brighton at home, Bristol City face Bournemouth, West Brom will be taking on Bournemouth whilst strugglers QPR and Plymouth will be facing Leicester and Brentford respectively. Luton and Watford meanwhile will be up against Nottingham Forest and Fulham respectively.
There is also one other all-Premier League tie to look forward to with Aston Villa facing off against West Ham, and both sides will be looking to go far in the competition as they're not having the best of seasons in the league.
FULL FA CUP 3RD ROUND DRAW:
Southampton v Swansea
Arsenal v Man United
Exeter v Oxford
Leyton Orient v Derby
Reading v Burnley
Aston Villa v West Ham
Norwich v Brighton
Man City v Salford
Millwall v Dagenham and Redbridge
Liverpool v Accrington Stanley
Bristol City v Wolves
Preston v Charlton
Chelsea v Morecambe
Middlesbrough v Blackburn
Bournemouth v West Brom
Mansfield v Wigan
Tamworth v Tottenham
Hull v Doncaster
Sunderland v Stoke
Leicester v QPR
Brentford v Plymouth
Coventry v Sheffield Wednesday
Newcastle v Bromley
Everton v Peterborough
Wycombe v Portsmouth
Birmingham v Lincoln
Leeds v Harrogate
Nottingham Forest v Luton
Sheffield United v Cardiff
Ipswich v Bristol Rovers
Fulham v Watford
Crystal Palace v Stockport
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