FA Cup: What to look out for in the quarter-finals this weekend

FA Cup quarter-finals on the BBC
Date: 16-17 March
Coverage of all matches, including highlights, across the BBC Sport website and app; Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United and Millwall v Brighton & Hove Albion live on BBC One; extensive coverage on BBC Radio 5 Live and local radio; live text commentary on the BBC Sport website

It's FA Cup quarter-final weekend, with all four ties played to a finish on the day and teams allowed to make a fourth substitution if games go to extra time.

Millwall, 19th in the Championship, are the lowest ranked of the remaining eight clubs, while Manchester United are seeking to win the competition for a joint-record 13th time.

Three of the four games are on Saturday, the other on Sunday.

United's tie at four-time winners Wolverhampton Wanderers is live on BBC One on Saturday (19:55 GMT) - as is Sunday's match between Millwall and Brighton & Hove Albion (14:00).

BBC Sport takes a look at this weekend's ties.

Gray sends Watford to last four

Watford are the first side to secure their semi-final place, with second-half substitute Andre Gray scoring two minutes after coming on to seal a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace.

The Hornets had earlier led through Etienne Capoue's instinctive finish before Michy Batshuayi levelled for the Eagles, finishing coolly after dispossessing Adrian Mariappa.

But soon after after replacing Will Hughes, Gray fired past Vincente Guaita to send his club into only their sixth FA Cup semi-final.

Swansea City v Manchester City: Will Pep win his first FA Cup?

Saturday, 16 March (17:20 GMT)

It's not that long ago Swansea City beat Premier League leaders Manchester City, substitute Luke Moore's header knocking Roberto Mancini's men off the summit in March 2012.

An awful lot has happened in the seven years since.

Swansea have gone from the Europa League in 2014 to a mid-table Championship side, while City, who recovered from defeat at the Liberty Stadium to win the league seven years ago, have gone from strength to strength.

Celina v Foden: City youngsters reunited in FA Cup.

The Welsh club's preparations were not helped by a league game at West Brom on Wednesday - a match they lost 3-0.

Graham Potter's side arrived back in south Wales in the early hours of Thursday, leaving them little time to prepare for Pep Guardiola's visit.

But Swansea's Kosovo midfielder Bersant Celina believes his side can give a good account of themselves against his former club.

Celina, 22, made four first-team appearances during Manuel Pellegrini's time at Etihad Stadium.

"Manchester City is where I became a man," Celina tells BBC Sport Wales.

"The club were a big influence on me. They had lots of really good young players and amazing coaches.

"The new academy was built while I was there and it was an amazing place to be.

"I was actually the first person to move into the academy and live there. I just wanted to be around that place so I could play football all the time."

Swansea City beat Manchester City on 11 March 2012
Luke Moore heads Swansea's winner against top-of-the-table Manchester City in 2012

Since their last FA Cup appearance, a 4-1 win at Newport County, Manchester City have won the Carabao Cup and remain on course for an astonishing quadruple.

They, too, were in midweek action - sticking seven past Schalke in the Champions League. That took their tally for the season in league and cups games to an incredible 137 goals.

Do not expect Guardiola to take this tie lightly. The Spaniard has yet to win the FA Cup and is likely to name a strong side.

Did you know? Swansea City have been eliminated in six of their past seven FA Cup ties against Premier League opponents.

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United: Ole fed to the Wolves?

Saturday, 16 March (19:55 GMT) live on BBC One

What a season Wolves are having.

They've already marked their Premier League return by beating Tottenham and Chelsea - as well as knocking Liverpool out of the FA Cup.

Will Nuno Espirito Santo's side end Manchester United's hopes of winning the trophy this season at a sold-out Molineux?

Can 'Mystic Matt' Doherty predict the future?

"We're going to try to do something great," Wolves' Morocco international Romain Saiss told the Express & Star.external-link

"It's an important game for us to get the semi-final at Wembley. We play at home and we have to be ready for this game."

United have had a full week to recover from their first domestic blip under interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, a two-time FA Cup winner with the Red Devils.

Solskjaer is demanding an immediate response after seeing his players drop to fifth in the table after a 2-0 defeat at Arsenal on Sunday.

United have beaten Reading, Arsenal and Chelsea to get to this stage.

They will have to bounce back without Ashley Young. The full-back serves a suspension, with 19-year-old Diogo Dalot favourite to take his place at right-back.

Juan Mata, who scored in the 2016 final, has not played since 24 February but is making progress after suffering an injury in the goalless draw against Liverpool.

"We have already had to play some tricky fixtures in the FA Cup and the trip to Wolves on Saturday will be no different," said the Spaniard.external-link

"We want to be in the semi-finals of a tournament that is very special for everyone, and to do so we will have to put in a good performance against opponents who are having a great season."

Did you know? This is the 100th meeting between Wolves and United in all competitions. Their last Molineux encounter came in March 2012 in the Premier League, a 5-0 victory for United.

'Thanks very much Ole!' - Solskjaer teases Shearer about FA Cup final defeat

Millwall v Brighton & Hove Albion: Another top-flight scalp?

Sunday, 17 March (14:00 GMT) live on BBC One

In the past two years, Bournemouth, Watford, Leicester City and Everton have lost in the FA Cup at Millwall.

Will Brighton become the latest Premier League team to fall in the Lions' den?

Seagulls striker Glenn Murray is determined that does not happen and will make sure Albion's foreign contingent know what to expect in Bermondsey on Sunday.

"We will sit them down and give them the heads-up," said Murray. "They've probably never been anywhere like that before.

"But there's nowhere more difficult than this."

Like Swansea, a midweek Championship programme before quarter-final weekend has done Millwall no favours, although they at least have an extra day to prepare.

The Lions are in a relegation fight but Millwall boss Neil Harris is confident of another upset.

"The Den will be rocking. We saw what it was like against Everton - it will be exactly the same for Brighton," said Harris.

Brighton manager Chris Hughton won the FA Cup with Tottenham in 1981 and 1982
Brighton manager Chris Hughton won the FA Cup with Tottenham in 1981 and 1982

"I'm really pleased with being at home - first and foremost for the fans. It's not been the most straightforward of seasons so far.

"But to be at home in the quarter-finals, against a Premier League side, is a good draw."

Did you know? This is Millwall's 11th FA Cup quarter-final - all as a non-top-flight team. Only Southampton (13) have reached more FA Cup quarter-finals while outside the top flight.

The FA Cup

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