West Ham can upset Reds while Tottenham also star in FA Cup

Matt Haynes | January 29, 2016

Colchester United v Tottenham

Pochettino can Spur his side onto a good cup run

Tottenham are odds-on at 2/5 with Coral to beat Colchester United in the fourth round of the FA Cup (in 90 minutes) and boss Mauricio Pochettino will be confident that his side can embark on a decent cup run.

While it took two attempts to progress against Leicester City, Spurs should be more confident that they can ease into the fifth round when confronted with League One outfit Colchester, who sit rock bottom of England’s third tier.

It could well mean that Pochettino takes this as an opportunity to rest key players and give youngsters a chance to shine. Teenage midfield duo, Harry Winks and Joshuah Onomah have featured in recent matchday squads, with the latter making a handful of appearances.

They are 9/4 and 7/2 respectively to score anytime, while Nabil Bentaleb could also have a starring role. Having played all of the replay against the Foxes, he made a substitute appearance against Crystal Palace. The Algerian is 8/1 to net in the anytime market.

Lack of striking options could see Kane start

With Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane Spurs’ only strikers, Pochettino could be forced to play one or the other, or even both if the former starts out wide.

The South Korean struck against the Foxes in the replay and is 3/1 to break the deadlock. Colchester, though are leaking goals at the minute and coming up against Kane is unlikely to help matters.

At 7/1 to hit a hat-trick, should Kane start, this could be worth a punt. Last time out, their hosts did concede three away from home against Scunthorpe so it is entirely possible.

There is very little in the form of scoring threats for the hosts, though Marvin Sordell has carved a reputation in front of goal over the years and is well represented at 16/5 in the anytime market.

Liverpool v West Ham United

Tough test for Reds

Here we will see how high Liverpool boss, Jurgen Klopp considers the FA Cup on his list of priorities. Having reached the final of the Capital One Cup, he will no doubt have targeted a top four place and may feel his side are also capable of challenging in the Europa League.

As such, an FA Cup run could be considered a burden by Klopp, especially with such a shortage of players currently due to injuries. Opponents West Ham will offer up a considerable challenge and Slaven Bilic’s side are 11/4 to secure a win in 90 minutes.

The Hammers are in the ascendancy at the minute, proving particularly tricky to beat, with only one defeat in their last 11 matches.

With four goals in his last three matches, Enner Valencia is likely to be a constant threat for what has been a notoriously rocky Reds rearguard and, as such, the Ecuadorian is 10/1 to score two or more. At the beginning of the month, the Hammers recorded a comfortable 2-0 win over Liverpool at Upton Park.

On that occasion, Michail Antonio and Andy Carroll were on the scoresheet, however, the latter is injured so the former Red will not be haunting Liverpool again. Antonio, though is available at 10/3 anytime.

In what could prove to be an omen, the Hammers recorded a 3-0 win over Liverpool at the end of August and what will be exactly five months later, they are 66/1 to achieve the same scoreline.

On-form Firmino to fire Liverpool through?

Brazilian star Roberto Firmino bagged a brace in the 5-4 thriller against Norwich City, helping his side take all three points.

He is 4/1 to open the scoring, though encouragingly Adam Lallana was also on the scoresheet during the match and is 7/4 in the anytime market.

If Liverpool are to progress, it is likely that centre forward Christian Benteke will need to be on top form and the Belgian is 5/1 to dispatch two or more, while youngster Jerome Sinclair could be given more FA Cup experience and is 5/4 to notch anytime.

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Check out what else is trending in the FA Cup.

Coral’s top tip: Back in-form Valencia to score two or more @ 10/1 with Coral.