FA Cup: Preview - Upsets are unlikely ...

By Scott Balaam (twitter @footiefun)

The final ties of the fifth round will be completed this week, the last two non-Premier League sides are expected to fall as they face tough opposition.

Having gone four matches without a loss, Reading will go into the tie against Everton with confidence. The winners will face the victor of Manchester City vs. Aston Villa.

The only other tie sees Leyton Orient travel to the Emirates to take on Arsenal, the League One side shocked everyone when they drew first time out but Wednesday night will be a different story.

Everton vs. Reading (R5, Tuesday 1^st March - 19:30)

Everton will be looking to emulate Birmingham and lift their first trophy in years, but first they have to beat Championship side Reading. The Toffees are 8s to lift the trophy in May, there was better value available before the Chelsea game but they could still be worth a punt.

There will be late fitness tests for Marouane Fellaini, Tim Cahill and Jermaine Beckford. Louis Saha crashed his Ferrari on Sunday, but was not hurt and could play.

Reading’s goalkeeper Adam Federici is out injured, whilst Shaun Cummings is doubtful after getting injured against Crystal Palace as is captain Ivar Ingimarsson.

Everton are on 1/2 to win on the night; not great value but if you can pick the first scorer then it becomes interesting. If Beckford starts he is 5s to continue his recent scoring run where he has found the back of the net three times in four games.

Reading’s two key players up front are Irish stars Shane Long and Noel Hunt, they are both capable of scoring and are 10s and 14s respectively to score first.

Manchester City vs. Aston Villa (R5, Wednesday 2nd March - 19:45)

Both sides will play their best teams as they will both believe they can win the cup, City’s draw on Sunday put an end to their Premier League dream but they can still win this and the Europa League.

The home side have injury concerns over Vincent Kompany who missed the game against Fulham, David Silva was rested on Sunday so he would be fit for this tie and James Milner was on the bench in that game  because of a hamstring problem.

Aston Villa had an excellent 4-1 victory over Blackburn and will need to play the same way against City. Their key players will be Ashley Young and Stuart Downing who were instrumental in Saturday’s win. One blow is that Darren Bent is cup-tied which will go against them.

Manchester City are expected to win, you can get 4/6 on a home win whilst Villa are 5s which is excellent odds for an all-Premier tie. As for who will score first Carlos Tevez is always likely to find the back of the net and is worth backing at 4s and Villa’s Young is 14s.

Arsenal vs. Leyton Orient (R5R, Wednesday 2nd March - 19:45)

Sunday should have provided Arsenal with their first trophy of the season, instead they now face an uphill battle to lift a trophy. After the disappointment of the Carling Cup, Arsene Wenger’s side can take it out on the Os.

This match is likely to be very one sided, with Arsenal running out easy winners. After injuring himself scoring on Sunday, Robin Van Persie is likely to be rested so he can get back to fitness ahead of the Champions League match against Barcelona.

A home win provides no value as expected (1/5) but Marouane Chamakh is 4s to score first which could be a good bet as is Andrey Arshavin at 11/2. The best value for the night is evens for ‘over 3.5 goals, on the excellent surface at the Emirates the home side should run riot.