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FA Cup Predictions - 4 April 2026, Quarter-finals

Simon Lewis

Editor

Last updated: 03 Apr 2026

Simon Lewis 03 Apr 2026

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Fired-up Man City to see off Liverpool at the Etihad.
Chelsea to cash in against low-key Port Vale.
Southampton to pull off a massive win over Arsenal.

Expired

Ben Waine of Port Vale scores against Sunderland (Getty Images).

Manchester City vs Liverpool

What was looking like an average season for City has suddenly thrown up the chance of a Cup Double or even a domestic treble. City had a brilliant win over Arsenal in the League Cup final after being hit with two defeats (both against Real Madrid) and a draw.

City have won 11 of their last 15 home matches, losing only to Real Madrid, so I’m backing them for a win with both sides to score.

Liverpool have failed to score only once in their last 17 matches, scoring 41 goals. They’ve been winning plenty of matches but have only 2 wins in their last 6, with 3 losses. Their last match saw them lose 2-1 away to Brighton, so they’re not likely to pull off a win at a fired-up Etihad.

Chelsea vs Port Vale

League 1 side Port Vale will have dreams of travelling to Stamford Bridge and tapping into the FA Cup potential for a giant-killing, but sadly this is where their glorious Cup run is sure to end. It’s a great time to face Chelsea, as the Londoners have lost their last 4 matches after shipping 12 goals and failing to score in their last 3.

Port Vale’s Cup run has been pretty low-key, with 3 home wins in a row (all 1-0), albeit they beat Premier League side Sunderland. Their own league form has been poor, with 4 defeats, 1 draw and 1 win in their last 6 matches.

Chelsea will go in hard and clinically as they look to find the form needed to fight for a place in Europe next season. Three goals-plus in the match looks a strong bet, but plucky Port Vale might scrape a morale-boosting goal, so I'd avoid backing a win to nil.

Southampton vs Arsenal

Southampton are in the Championship playoff spots but have some big matches ahead of them, with five matches in 17 days. A win against Arsenal will give them a lift ahead of the playoff race, so they will go hard at Arsenal.

The Saints have home ground advantage where they have kept 6 clean sheets in their last 9 matches. They have won 6 and drawn 1 of their last 7 matches, scoring 13 goals to 2. It’s a big ask, but with just 1 defeat in their last 14 matches, I’m backing them to rise to the challenge.

Arsenal’s season has been magnificent, but in the last round of the FA Cup they scraped home 2-1 away to League One side Mansfield with some key players likely to be rested as they have five big matches in the next 15 days.

Arsenal also have the 1st leg of their crucial Champions League quarter-final against Sporting to come in three days time. Away to Championship side Southampton I’m backing the Arsenal side littered with injury niggles to take a shock defeat.

Verdict

English FA Cup

Wins for Manchester City, Chelsea and a giant-killing for Southampton.

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Simon is a talented sports writer in South Africa with a strong focus on cricket having played first-team level for UCT, including playing at two Universities Weeks.

From a young age Simon was an avid reader of cricket magazines and books, and went on to be Editor of The Googly, CricketScene SA and SA Cricket, in addition to being a Features Writer on SA Sports Illustrated.

He has interviewed most of South Africa's premier cricketers and was the first writer to interview a teenaged Jacques Kallis.

Simon has also written about English and local football, rugby and cricket, in addition to major international tennis and golf stars and competitions.

You can follow more from Simon at Muckrack, X and LinkedIn.