1. Some one should have told the remaining FA Cup competitors precisely what was meant by the ‘fifth round draw’. Four of Saturday’s five matches ended level.
2. Chelsea will be thankful that the sight of Guus Hiddink in the stands seems to have reminded Nicolas Anelka where the net is.
3. Lightning doesn’t strike twice when it comes to Manchester United. Derby must have used all their luck in their Carling Cup victory over the Red Devils at Pride Park.
4. Martin O’Neill will be gutted at Aston Villa’s 3-1 defeat to Everton. They were in an excellent position to lift the trophy given their good form this season and the Big Four’s Champions League commitments.
5. Swansea were desperately unlucky not to knock Fulham out after dominating play at the Liberty Stadium.
6. Typical of Stewart Downing to score for Middlesbrough after another anonymous performance for England (Boro fans will probably point out that at least he has had the decency to generally be poor for them as well as England for much of this season!).
7. There were a couple of sweet goals in the Blackburn-Coventry match. If you haven’t seen them, check out Roque Santa Cruz’s volleyed opener from the edge of the box, followed by Aron Gunnarsson’s superb strike from outside the area.
8. Sheffield United’s Greg Halford obviously got let down by a kitman who promised him that customised t-shirt was the next item on his ‘To Do’ list!
9. Despite Anelka’s hat-trick, I was impressed with the performance of young Watford keeper Scott Loach. A string of very good saves, which will have caught the eye of a Premier League scout or two.
10. Save of the day: Stiliyan Petrov of Aston Villa. Unfortunately, Petrov learnt the hard way that it is no use making a great save if you are not back on you feet quickly to make the next one!
Video spotted on 101GreatGoals
