The FA Cup quarter-finals of the 2025-2026 season will see a clash between Manchester City and Liverpool, while Arsenal and Chelsea will face easier opponents in Southampton and Port Vale respectively in early April.
The draw for the quarter-finals of the English FA Cup for the 2025-2026 season has determined some notable matchups, with the highlight being the clash between Manchester City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium on the evening of April 4th.
In the fifth round played last weekend, Manchester City and Liverpool both won 3-1 away from home, against Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers respectively. Although Manchester City is in more consistent form, in a knockout match like the FA Cup, anything can happen.
Manchester City currently face a packed schedule in March. Pep Guardiola's team are second in the Premier League, seven points behind leaders Arsenal, but still have a game in hand.
Besides the FA Cup, Manchester City are also preparing for two Champions League Round of 16 matches against Real Madrid on the mornings of March 12th and 18th. Between these two matches, Manchester City will play away at West Ham United in the Premier League on March 15th.
On March 22nd, Manchester City will face Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final of the 2025-2026 season.
Liverpool are also facing a packed schedule. They will play Galatasaray of Türkiye in the Champions League round of 16 on the mornings of March 11th and March 19th.
Between those two matches, Liverpool will host Tottenham Hotspur at home before traveling to Brighton & Hove Albion on March 21st for a Premier League game.
The 2025-2026 season is proving quite challenging for Liverpool. The team currently sits sixth in the Premier League, 19 points behind leaders Arsenal, and has already been eliminated from the Carabao Cup. Therefore, the FA Cup and the Champions League are the only two remaining competitions where "The Reds" can hope to win a trophy.
In another FA Cup quarter-final match, Arsenal will travel to St Mary's to face Southampton.
This draw is considered quite favorable for Arsenal, who hold the record for 14 FA Cup titles. The Gunners have the opportunity to advance to the semi-finals without having to face any team currently playing in the Premier League.
On their way to the quarter-finals, Arsenal successively eliminated Mansfield Town and Wigan Athletic, both from the third-tier League One, after defeating Portsmouth of the second-tier Championship in the third round.
Arsenal are currently leading the Premier League and still have a chance to compete for titles in several competitions, thus harboring hopes of winning a quadruple this season.
Meanwhile, Port Vale, a team currently playing in League One, will be visiting Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, the reigning FIFA Club World Cup champions.
In the fifth round of the FA Cup, Port Vale caused a major upset by defeating Sunderland, a team currently playing in the English Premier League, with a score of 1-0.
However, Port Vale currently sit bottom of League One, eight points behind safety. They are also the lowest-ranked team remaining in the FA Cup this season. Notably, this is only the first time Port Vale have reached the FA Cup quarter-finals since 1954.
Meanwhile, Chelsea just had a tough match against Wrexham in round 5. The London team could only win 4-2 after 120 minutes, as Wrexham had to play with 10 men after George Dobson received a red card.
In the other quarter-final match, West Ham United will host Leeds United at London Stadium. West Ham overcame Brentford on penalties after the two teams drew 2-2 in 120 minutes of play. Meanwhile, Leeds United secured a comfortable 3-0 victory over Norwich City to advance to the quarter-finals.