Match Preview
Fulham vrs Crystal Palace
Emirates FA Cup quarter finals 24/25 at Craven Cottage
Saturday 29th March 2025 KO: 12:15
Referee:
Darren England (Barnsley)
Live on ITV1
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Separated by fewer than 10 miles in England's bustling capital, London rivals Fulham and Crystal Palace vie for a coveted FA Cup semi-final place in Saturday afternoon's quarter-final tie at Craven Cottage.
The hosts' penalty-kick prowess enabled them to eliminate Manchester United from the previous round, while the Eagles trounced Millwall in a clash overshadowed by a sickening injury to Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Rewind to the first game of the Premier League season, where Man United new boy Joshua Zirkzee scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Fulham. Fast-forward to March 2, and the Dutchman was also responsible for the crucial kick in the two sides' tense FA Cup 5th Round game..
However, Zirkzee's game-defining act on this occasion came against rather than for the Red Devils, who were taken all the way to spot kicks by Marco Silva's side following a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, where Bernd Leno denied Victor Lindelof and then Zirkzee from 12 yards.
In contrast, four perfect penalties from Silva's men ensured that they would rip the FA Cup trophy out of Man United's grasp, and Fulham have earned their dark horses tag as they pursue a first-ever triumph in the competition, but the historical records do not make for pleasant reading.
Indeed, Fulham have been knocked out of their past four FA Cup quarter-final ties since last reaching the semis in 2002, three times to Man United and once against Tottenham Hotspur, whom they put down 2-0 just before international football intervened.
Second-half strikes from Rodrigo Muniz and ex-Lilywhite Ryan Sessegnon propelled Fulham to their sixth win from their last eight matches in that London derby, thus keeping them firmly in contention for a top-seven finish, but Silva's men are incredibly yet to win back-to-back home games in all tournaments this season.
On the other hand, Palace fortified the walls of Selhurst Park with three successive home victories before the two-week hiatus, the second of which saw the Eagles overcome a horrific injury to star striker Mateta to send Millwall packing from the FA Cup last 16.
Oliver Glasner's troops prevailed 3-1 after Liam Roberts's inexcusable high boot on Mateta, which emotional Palace chairman Steve Parish understandably labelled the "most reckless" challenge he had seen in his 59 years on this earth, but the Eagles overcame the shell-shock of that incident to stroll into the last eight.
Like Fulham, Saturday's visitors are also still yearning for their maiden triumph in the FA Cup, but while the Cottagers have lost each of their last four FA Cup quarter-final encounters, Palace have prevailed in four of their last five matches at this stage of the competition
In their final competitive game before the international break, Palace struggled to break down a dogged Ipswich Town team with the bandaged Mateta watching from afar, but a moment of magic from Ismaila Sarr was enough for a 1-0 Premier League win and the Eagles' fourth in a row in all competitions.
That successful run coincidentally commenced with a 2-0 win for Glasner's side over Fulham at Craven Cottage in late February, a result that made it six away games unbeaten for the Eagles against the Cottagers, who have not beaten Palace on their own patch since New Year's Day 2005.
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This is just the second campaign in which Fulham and Crystal Palace have met in the FA Cup, with the Eagles winning a second round replay 1-0 in February 1907 previously.
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Crystal Palace are unbeaten in their last six away games against Fulham (W3 D3). They’ve already won 2-0 at Craven Cottage in the Premier League this season – the only side they’ve won twice at on the road in a single campaign is Southampton in 1964-65.
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Fulham progressed from all four of their FA Cup quarter-final ties between 1957-58 and 2001-02, but have since been eliminated in each of their last four appearances at this stage (2003-04, 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2022-23).
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Fulham eliminated holders Manchester United in the fifth round, but haven’t knocked out Premier League opposition in consecutive rounds of the FA Cup since rounds three and four in 2002-03 (Birmingham City & Charlton Athletic).
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Fulham’s Andreas Pereira has created 18 chances in the FA Cup this season, the most of any player among the sides remaining in the competition.
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Crystal Palace have progressed from four of their last five FA Cup quarter-final ties, failing only in 2018-19 against Watford in this run.
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Crystal Palace have progressed from just two of their last 10 FA Cup ties against fellow Premier League opponents, doing so against Tottenham Hotspur (2018-19 fourth round) and Everton (2021-22 quarter-final).
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Daniel Muñoz is Crystal Palace’s top scorer in the FA Cup this season with two goals, while he also scored the Eagles’ second goal in their 2-0 win at Fulham in the Premier League last month.
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Source Ben Knapton at SportsMole/BBCSports