FA Cup fifth round: All you need to know

Football writer Ben Bloom looks at the sides in FA Cup fifth-round action and what to expect.

Just 16 teams remain as the FA Cup reaches the business end of the competition and supporters start to dream of Wembley ahead of the fifth round this weekend.

Lower-tier clubs are in short supply this season, with 11 of the remaining sides plying their trade in the Premier League and the other five coming from the Championship.

Here is everything you need to know about the FA Cup fifth round.

FA Cup fifth-round fixtures (all times GMT)

Friday 28 February

20:00 Aston Villa v Cardiff City

Saturday 1 March

12:15 Crystal Palace v Millwall
12:15 Preston North End v Burnley
15:00 AFC Bournemouth v Wolverhampton Wanderers
17:45 Manchester City v Plymouth Argyle

Sunday 2 March

13:45 Newcastle United v Brighton & Hove Albion
16:30 Manchester United v Fulham

Monday 3 March

19:30 Nottingham Forest v Ipswich Town

Match previews

Aston Villa v Cardiff City

Unai Emery’s Villa side head into this tie off the back of a demoralising 4-1 midweek defeat at Palace.

Without a major trophy since 1996, Villa have already seen off Premier League opposition in the form of West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur this season.

Due to their Championship relegation battle, Cardiff manager Omer Riza has suggested it is “not possible” for him to field a full-strength side against Villa.

The Welsh club are into the FA Cup fifth round for the first time in 11 years, but seem likely to prioritise upcoming matches against Championship high-fliers Burnley and Sunderland over the following week.

Crystal Palace v Millwall

The last time these two fierce southeast London rivals met, in a 2021 FA Cup third-round tie, Palace edged that encounter by a 2-1 scoreline.