The Premier League and FA Cup quarter finals make for a busy weekend of football with a lot still at stake for every team.
Grosvenor Sport ambassador Jamie O’Hara previews two hugely important Matchweek 28 Premier League clashes, as well as an FA Cup quarter-final that sees Fulham visit Old Trafford.
Nottingham Forest v Newcastle, Friday 20:00 GMT
Score prediction: Nottingham Forest 2 – 2 Newcastle 17/2
Anytime goalscorer: Brennan Johnson 18/5
Nottingham Forest’s home form is brilliant. They have the crowd behind them and play with intensity, but their away form is woeful and that needs to be addressed. They can’t keep going away in the Premier League and getting pumped. They can’t rely on home form, that’s not good enough.
Newcastle’s fans will be disappointed if they get anything other than Europa League with the team that they have now. I don’t think anything less will be acceptable to them, some will say European football is a step in the right direction, but they are better than that now. They are a decent team and for me they have to get into the top six so this is a must win.
I really like Brennan Johnson. I think he is brilliant, he is exciting and good on the ball. He takes players on, he’s direct and he can score goals. He has a bright future; he will be a top player. He always looks like Forest’s best player, I like him a lot and he will be influential in this one.
Nottingham Forest’s away form is diabolical but their home form is decent, so I’ll go 2-2 and Brennan Johnson to score. Steve Cooper has done a great job – they will stay the Premier League.
Chelsea v Everton, Saturday 17:30 GMT
Score prediction: Chelsea 2 – 1 Everton 8/1
Anytime goalscorer: Mykhailo Mudryk 3/1
I think Chelsea win this 2-1, they have picked up a little bit. They haven’t been in great form, but they seem to have found a way to get results. I don’t think they are great to watch, but they have some hugely talented players in the team.
Mykhailo Mudryk has just joined and it’s his first season. He obviously has something special and they have paid a lot of money for him. You can’t expect instant results, he is a young lad and a huge talent that will be a success. He has been thrown in the deep end with Chelsea and he think he’ll learn quickly. He will bag one in this game; he’s looked like scoring every time he has come on.
Once everyone knows his attributes, personality, his character traits and he settles in, he will be world class. Chelsea have some world class players in the making. A young team with a bright future, they will be dangerous.
Everton are still struggling with goals, but I think they will do enough to stay up. They can’t hit a barn door at the moment; Dominic Calvert-Lewin has struggled with injuries, he is never ever fit. They’ll do enough because they are a Sean Dyche side, but they haven’t got anyone scoring goals for them and I don’t think it will be much different in this one.
Manchester United v Fulham, Sunday 16:30 – FA Cup
Score prediction: Manchester United 3 – 1 Fulham 10/1
Anytime goalscorer: Marcus Rashford 27/25
Manchester United have a chance of winning the FA Cup this season for sure, they are a good cup team now, we have seen that. Erik ten Hag has changed the mentality and philosophy of the football club – the players want to win; they have that desire now to go and win games. They could end up having a great season, they really could. If they win a couple of cup competitions that is a massive season for United in Ten Hag’s first year in charge.
They should go for both the FA Cup and the Europa League. They look like they have consolidated top four, and if they get a Europa League and FA Cup final why not go for both? They could win it all and could be the team that ends up winning the most cups this year. We can’t get away from them at the moment, they are probably one of the favourites in the FA Cup, and the Europa League. It will be interesting to see what they do.
Marco Silva has had a great season with Fulham, I think they need to try and keep him because he is a good fit for them. Stay there and be happy and try and make it good with them, he doesn’t need to look to move on. He is a top manager and can do great things with the club.
United to win 3-1 and Marcus Rashford to score. I can’t see anything other than the United win here; Fulham are a good side and they have had a great season but for me United will have too much for them, especially at home.
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