Martin Dubravka the hero as Newcastle keep season alive with victory on penalties
In every successful season there is a moment when luck decides your fate, when you have to dig in and come through adversity, somehow catch your breath and savour your triumph. This may well be that moment for Newcastle United.
At least the dream remains alive and a nightmare result that could so easily have caused their season to disintegrate into acrimony and anger was narrowly averted thanks to Martin Dubravka’s magnificent save to keep out Dom Hyam’s penalty in the final spot kick of the shoot-out.
It could become one of the most famous saves in the club’s long history, coming in front of more than 7,000 Geordies packed into the Darwen End. It sparked delirious scenes in the away end, the excruciating nature of their team’s performance vanishing in a wave of euphoria at the end of it.
Martin Dubravka is the hero for Newcastle as they reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup!#BBCFootball #FACup pic.twitter.com/U79sNGok7I
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) February 27, 2024
For a club who have not won a major trophy since 1969, talk of silverware may seem fanciful, but every famous cup run tends to have a match where defeat beckoned you close enough to feel its icy fingers around your throats. At the very least, Newcastle’s season remains alive, when it was in real danger of fizzling out and dying.
Blackburn Rovers were superb. Newcastle were terrible, especially in the first half when only Newcastle’s second-choice goalkeeper Dubravka prevented them trailing at half time.
Even when they were better in the second half, Newcastle looked like they had imploded and tossed a place in the quarter-final away. Having taken the lead through Anthony Gordon, after Howe had brought on three substitutes to change the pattern of the game, Newcastle appeared to be cruising.
At least until captain Jamaal Lascelles’s horrendous error, completely missing a header he was trying to put out for a throw in gifted Rovers an equaliser through Sammie Szmodics.
Rovers very nearly won it after that, but ran out of steam in stoppage time. Newcastle should have won it before penalties, but Gordon, Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes and Harvey Barnes all missed sitters in both halves of extra time.
These are how villains are made. Barnes also missed his penalty in the shoot-out, but he and Lascelles were spared by Dubravka’s heroics. Play like this again in the FA Cup and Newcastle will surely go out, but they live to fight another day.
It was a victory for endurance and perseverance, but somehow that made it thrilling too. This was the first time Newcastle have won a penalty shoot-out in the FA Cup. They have already made history of sorts so why not do something truly special now?
The one consistently impressive trait under Howe has been Newcastle’s refusal to give up, to never know when they are beaten, to keep going no matter what. That is so often the foundation stone for success and they will await the draw with excitement.
In the end, the result is all that matters and this was a huge one for Howe. If he had lost here, against Championship opposition and with his team slipping down to 10th in the Premier League last weekend, the mood on Tyneside would have started to turn. Not ugly, he has too much goodwill in the bank for that, but there would have been real pressure and the few dissenting voices would have grown louder and bolder among the fanbase.
Instead, the campaign has picked up momentum precisely at the moment it looked like it was in danger of collapse. It will certainly be remembered for a while, for the good and the bad, the pain and the joy.
“It’s a big moment in our season,” said Howe. “We hope it injects momentum into our season, we knew this game was going to be tough, we knew Blackburn wouldn’t make it easy for us and it was a really good cup tie.
“Our quality wasn’t always there, there was a hangover from the Arsenal defeat early on, but our spirit was. That has never gone.
“I didn’t fear the consequences of defeat, you can’t think like that as a manager on the sidelines. You can’t have your players looking at you thinking he’s nervous, he’s gone. You’ve got to stay in the moment, you’ve got to lead, you’ve got to be strong and support your players. That has always been my management style.
“We are one game away from Wembley again now, this season can still be very special for us. That is how we have got to see it now.”
This was not a good performance. Much of Newcastle’s play did not inspire confidence. You could even make a strong case to say Blackburn Rovers should have won, but they did not.
Newcastle came through it with the win, they came through it with their FA Cup dreams alive and hopes of something truly special remains. That is the magic of the FA Cup, even when there is very little to enjoy except for the end result.
Newcastle win 4-3 on penalties: as it happened
10:52 PM GMT
Newcastle jubilant
10:49 PM GMT
No post-match on the BBC
News never sleeps.
10:46 PM GMT
Newcastle into the sixth round
They join Coventry City, Manchester City and Leicester City in the quarter-finals. The last four places will be filled tomorrow.
10:45 PM GMT
Dubravka has saved Newcastle’s bacon several times tonight
And keeps them in the Cup with an excellent save from a perfectly respectable penalty.
10:44 PM GMT
Hyam takes a deeop breath
And his pen is saved by Dubravak to the keeper’s right.
Newcastle win 4-3.
10:44 PM GMT
Anthony Gordon
Scores. Hard and central.
Newcastle 4Blackburn 3
Blackburn’s captain Hyam must score.
10:43 PM GMT
Ayari, an impressive sub, takes responsibility
Cool as an Inspiral Carpets T-shirt slogan. Hops and then cocks his ankle to put it botton left.
Newcastle 3 Blackburn 3
10:42 PM GMT
Anderson was brought on for this
And delivers, thumping it bottom left. Keeper got near but it was too strong.
Newcastle 3 Blackburn 2
10:41 PM GMT
Sigurdsson on the spot
Larrups it into the bottom left.
Newcastle 2 Blackburn 2
10:40 PM GMT
Bruno places the ball on the spot
And stutters before whipping it to the right of middle, but only just off centre, scores.
Newcastle 2 Blackburn 1
10:39 PM GMT
Brittain steps up
The right wing-back has a short run up but slots it into the bottom left.
Newcastle 1 Blackburn 1 after two pens each.
10:38 PM GMT
Harvey Barnes walks up
Saved! Low to the keeper’s left and he reaches it to bat it away.
Newcastle 1 Blackburn 0
10:37 PM GMT
Szmodics up next
Saved! Too close to the middle. Dubravka flops to his right.
Newcastle 1 Blackburn 0
10:37 PM GMT
Fabian Schar
Scores. Rolls it into the bottom right. Cool as a cucumber.
Newcastle 1 Blackburn 0
10:36 PM GMT
Newcastle win the toss and will shoot first
The coin also landed on the side that sends the shootout to the away end, where 7,500 of the Toon Army are residing. Schar to take the first.
10:34 PM GMT
Sammie Szmodics
Is having intensive treatment on his right leg and doesn’t seem overly concerned.
10:32 PM GMT
Full time: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Destination penalties.
10:31 PM GMT
120 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Szmodics seems to have twanged his hamstring and is limping forlornly.
Longstaff wrestles Chrisene to the ground as he runs through the centre circle. Yellow card. Blackburn free-kick just inside the Toon half.
10:29 PM GMT
119 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
10:28 PM GMT
118 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Elliot Anderson makes his long-awaited return from injury, replacing Lewis Miley, himself a sub. One eye on pens, no doubt.
10:26 PM GMT
116 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Harvey Barnes cuts in off the left on to his right to shoot from 22 yards but can’t find the target. Less than a minute later Szmodics crosses from the right, Sigurdsson heads it back across and Ayari in the middle just can’t stretch far enough to meet it optimally and steers his header over form five yards.
10:24 PM GMT
114 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Szmodics is sent down the right of the box by Markanday’s lovely pass but he’s tired and it shows with his angled right-foot shot that Dubravka turns away.
10:23 PM GMT
112 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Remarkable block from Wharton lunging to his right to keep out Bruno’s shot and then Barnes snatches at the rebound and smokes his shot wide.
10:20 PM GMT
110 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Newcastle take a corner short to Gordon who fizzes in a cross between the siz-yard line and penalty spot that parts Barnes’ hair and Pears clutches it.
10:19 PM GMT
108 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Blackburn are fighting hard with Ayarin down the right and then Szmodics has a shootingh chance from a left-wing cross but uncharacteristically hesitates.
10:13 PM GMT
105 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Now Pears slaps Barnes post-bound header round it for a corner. Burn meets the cross and blooters it over the bar.
That’s half-time in extra time.
10:12 PM GMT
103 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Simply sensational double save from Pears. Bruno’s shot is blocked by Chrisene and the ball drops to Gordon eight yards iut but he shoots low and straight. Pears saves with his feet then scrambles to block Longstaff’s attempt to tap it in from the rebound. They had to score.
10:08 PM GMT
100 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Chrisene slides in to tackle Longstaff as he surged on to a pass in the box and shaped to shoot. He timed it to perfection and knocked the ball behind for a corner. Bruno floats it deep and Schar heads miles over.
10:06 PM GMT
98 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Vital blcok from Miley from Szmodics’s shot from iside the D after a driving run from Sigurdsson.
10:05 PM GMT
96 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Koumetio tackles Longstaff who hits the deck like a bag of spanners, demanding a free-kick for a perfectly fine tackle. The referee isn’t buying it.
10:03 PM GMT
Full time: Bournemouth 0 Leicester 1
The Championship leaders have beaten the Cherries despite making nine changes to the starting XI. They join Coventry and Man City in Round Six, AKA the quarter-finals.
10:02 PM GMT
93 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Driving run from the sub Harvey Barnes results in a corner when his centre is turned behind. Billy Koumetio, on loan from Liverpool, cleans up from the corner.
09:54 PM GMT
Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
The 10 o’clock news is on pause. Extra time beckons.
09:53 PM GMT
90+4 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
Blackburn have turned up the pressure in stoppage time and draw another good save from Dubravka with his feet.
09:52 PM GMT
Full time
Luton 2 City 6
The Haaland show ends. What a force of nature he is. And to be teamed up with De Bruyne ... it sometimes doesn’t seem fair. City were far from perfect but they are irresistible with those two in that mood.
09:49 PM GMT
90 min: Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1
There will eb five minutes of stoppage time to play to find a winner before an extra half hour.
09:45 PM GMT
GOAL!
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 1 (Fatawu) Simply stunning curling left-foot strike that fades in at the left post from the Leicester sub. What a strike on a night of worldies, arguably the best of the lot.
That is sensational! 💪
A peach from @LCFC's Abdul Fatawu 🍑#BBCFootball #FACup #BOULEI pic.twitter.com/joYgi3sph5— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) February 27, 2024
09:37 PM GMT
GOAL!
Blackburn 1 Newcastle 1 (Szmodics) Scratch that last comment. Daft error from Lascelles misjudging and missing a header from a throw down the line. Chrisene snatches it away, bonbs down the left before pulling back a pass to Markanday who whipped a blistering left-foot shot that Dubravka tipped on to the underside of the bar and it bounced up to the roght post where Szmodics hooked it in with a leaping volley.
It was only ever going to be Sammie Szmodics ⚽
The Championship side are level against Newcastle!#BBCFootball #FACup pic.twitter.com/pQTqwkUlcZ— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) February 27, 2024
09:36 PM GMT
77 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 1
Newcastle’s greater stamina and skill are beginning to assert themselves.
09:33 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 2 City 6 (Kovacic) Another sweet strike, this time from the Croatia dribble-meister, hooking it with swerve and dip. It was close to Krul but if he ever was a Premier League calibre keeper, he doesn’t look like one now.
09:28 PM GMT
GOAL!
Blackburn 0 Newcastle 1 (Gordon) Made by Almiron’s out to in run down the right. Fed by Trippier’s pass, Almiron cuts in and squareswith his left to Gordon by the penalty spot and he sweeps a right-foot shot in at the left post.
09:28 PM GMT
68 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Gordon is put through from halfway and goes one on one with Pears but he hits the left-foot shot straight at Pears who closed the gap and spread himself. Longstaff meets the subsequent corner with a canny near-post run but cannot twist his neck that extra 10 degrees to sneak it in at the post.
09:25 PM GMT
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
Into stoppage time at Vitality Stadium and with a minute to go Bournemouth have a corner on the right. Vestergaard wins the near-post header and sends it skipping and spinning past the far post. Alex Scott was 2ft away from turning it in. The whistle goes seconds later and this one will go to extra time.
09:19 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 2 Man City 5 (Haaland) Mixes it up by receiving the final pass from Bernardo, clipped across from left to right, and he lamps his fifth goal of the game past Krul with a vicious left-foot shot.
09:19 PM GMT
60 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
The closest Newcastle have come to a goal, Lascelles creeps round the back at a corner, heads back across goal. Pears knocks it out and the ball pinballs around the six-yard box, prodded shots and blocks abound until Blackburn scramble it away.
09:15 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 2 City 4 (Haaland) Four goals for Haaland and four assists for De Bruyne who walsk down the right then accelerates out of the blocks to gobble up Stones’ pass and square it for Haaland to drive home.
09:12 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 2 City 3 (Clark) Rubbish clearance by Ortega is picked off by the last person he would want to latch on to it. Barkely traps the ball then lobs a lovely pass through the inside right and Clark controls it on his chest, lets it drop then buries a right-foot half-volley past the keeper.
09:12 PM GMT
53 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
It’s all Blackburn. Newcastle look jaded and shaky.
09:11 PM GMT
Luton 1 City 3
Good save by Krul to keep out Matheus Nunes’ left-foot piledriver.
09:10 PM GMT
51 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Another fine Dubravka save to beat Buckley’s shot away low to his right after excellent play from Szmodics to switch play high up the field to the right and Brittain.
09:07 PM GMT
48 min: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Trippier stands overa free-kick, 30 yards out. He slips it short to Bruno sho chips it into the box but Blackburn win the ball and force Newcastle to go 70 yards back to their keeper.
09:03 PM GMT
The teams are back out at Ewood Park
Or rather one of them is. Eddie Howe has sent them on to the equivalent of the naughty step two minutes on the field before Blackburn emerge.
Sigurdsson replaces the hamstrung Gallagher for Rovers.
09:01 PM GMT
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
Now Semenyo hogs the ball too long rather than playing in Ouattara after the ref turned a blind wye to a Scott foul. Semenyo takes a a touch, then another and finally pumps his shot into Vestergaard’s shins.
08:59 PM GMT
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
It’s getting to be an end-to-end match now and big chances for Scott and Marcal are not converted.
08:52 PM GMT
Half-time: Luton 1 Man City 3
Bernardo Silva doffs his metaphorical cap to Jordan Clark as the two sides walk off. City were cakewalking to victory but that wonderful strike may mean Haaland and De Bruyne stay on a while longer.
08:49 PM GMT
Half-time verdict
Newcastle have dominated in terms of possession and territory but have done very little with in terms of creating chances. And their lack of a cutting edge has been inflamed by complacency in defence. The two best chances of the half have fallen to Blackburn and goalkeeper Martin Dubravka has made two excellent saves to deny Dolan and Szmodics. There is every reason to be alarmed if you are manager Eddie Howe.
08:48 PM GMT
Half-time: Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Blackburn have been the better side, creating the better chances and their central midfield two, Moran and Buckley, are playing very well.
08:47 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 1 Man City 3 (Clark) An absolute worldie. Flicked to him by Barkley 22 yards out and he wrapped his instep around it and bent it into the top right corner. Marvellous finish. A pearler and a screamer.
That is a STUNNER! 🤩
Luton pull one back before half-time and what a goal it was! ⚽️#EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/lA5F6XR0PM— ITV Football (@itvfootball) February 27, 2024
08:45 PM GMT
44 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Dubravka palms over Szmodics’ left-foot shot from 12 yards. He has done very well in beating Newcastle’s trap all night, running in behind. Dubravka to the rescue again.
08:42 PM GMT
GOAL!?!
Luton 0 Man City 3 (Haaland) His eighth hat-trick, secured by drawing Krul out of his goal and dinking it over him. Glorious finish. There is a VAR check but he is onside. Another assist for De Bruyne.
08:39 PM GMT
Jack Grealish limps off
And has his head in his hands with his hood pulled over his face. Doku replaces him. Johnson replaces Bell for Leicester. Looks like the groin injury has flared up again.
08:38 PM GMT
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
Semenyo just fails to telescope his leg out far enough as he lunged into the six-yard box to try to fence in a left-wing cross. Any contact would have made it. But he can’t reach it.
08:36 PM GMT
Luton 0 Man City 2
Krul thwarts Haaland from bagging a first-half hat-trick (so far) when he blocks De Bruyne’s sweet volley and bounds to his feet to stop Haaland’s shot on the rebound.
08:34 PM GMT
33min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Szmodics hammers a shot from 25 yards that Dubravka smothers and half a minuite later Newcastle work an opening for Longstaff to shoot across goal.
08:33 PM GMT
31 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Moran wins the ball in the centre-circle and the on-loan Brighton midfielder drives forward from left to right, looking as if he’s about to open his body to shoot but instead lays it off to Dolan who thumps a daisycutter from the 18-yard line and Dubravka dives low to his right to palm it awat. Szmodics gambled that Dubravka wouldn’t get there and ran ahead so when Dubravka plamed it back towards the six-yard box, Szmodics was in the goal.
08:28 PM GMT
27 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Szmodics is sent free down the Blackburn left and has Trippier and Lascelles floundering but he lashes his left-foot shot into the side-netting. Nice pass from Buckley to let him loose.
08:26 PM GMT
Tennis ball protest
Another brief hold up in the game as Blackburn fans throw what looked like tennis balls on to the pitch accompanied with chants against the owners of “we want the Venkys out.”
Newcastle have been the better side but Blackburn have held firm under the early pressure and the Magpies have shown a tendency to try and force a pass that is not really on in the final third.
08:24 PM GMT
Half-time: Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
A handful of decent chances for both sides but it remains goalless, Albrighton striking the post the closest the visitors have come.
08:22 PM GMT
20 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Do you like these multi-game blogs or would you prefer we kept to an individual FA Cup match? Any opinions/comments on the subject would be gratefully received in the comments section below.
Trippier has a free-kick for Newcastle parallel with the penalty spot but wide on the left. He floats his inswinging free-kick deep and it sails out for a goal-kick.
08:18 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 0 Man City 2 (Haaland) Mengi is booked on halfway for grabbing Haaland round the neck and, after a lecture from the referee, he drops back to mark Haaland. But he doesn’t do it well when he has to try to tame the beats legally. De Bruyne slips the ball down the inside left with a wonderful pass, Haaland hares past Mengi and rifles his shot past Krul.
08:17 PM GMT
14 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
The Blackburn fans lob a handful of tennis balls on the pitch to protest 14 years of Venky’s ownership which has kept the club in limbo.
Newcastle fans are not sympathetic singing: ‘What the f------ hell is that?’ Short memories.
After the balls are cleared away, the game resumes.
08:15 PM GMT
Bournemouth 0 Leicester 0
Stil goalless for Bournemouth against Leicester’s irregulars where both Unal and Senesi are complaining after ‘heavy’ tackles from the men in blue.
08:12 PM GMT
11 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Newcastle take a corner short and then Trippier whips the ball deep to pick out Bruno on the volley. He meets it with the meat of his right boot but McFadzean closes the gap with a big stride and the ball cannons off him and out for a throw-in.
08:09 PM GMT
7 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
A couple of minutes after a Newcastle corner Blackburn break and Gallagher is the grateful recipient of Trippier’s sliding lunge. He sprints down the left, tacking inside and shoots, the ball taking a deflection and looping into Dubravka’s grasp.
08:08 PM GMT
Couple of decent chances for Carlton Morris
But he snatches at them and Ake cleans up. Doughty the provider on both occasions.
08:06 PM GMT
GOAL!
Luton 0 Man City 1 (Haaland) Pounces on a De Bruyne pass after good work down the left by Matheus Nunes. De Bruyne’s pass was slightly behind Haaland but no matter, he sweeps it in anyway.
08:02 PM GMT
1 min Blackburn 0 Newcastle 0
Blackburn pin Newcastle deep inside their own half and Brittain whips over a cross that Lascelles repels and sets off a break that could have resulted in a three v three but ran out of steam.
Trippier is receiving the traditional welcome for a Claret at Ewood Park.
07:59 PM GMT
The players are out at Ewood Park
Lascelles, the club captain in for the suspended Botman, leads Newcastke out. They are wearing black shirts and primrose shorts and socks. Looks like a rugby strip. Blackburn are in their halves. Still a gorgeous combo.
07:56 PM GMT
Unal has landd heavily
And requires treatment. The physio is checking for a head injury as he lies prone but he seems to be OK. Conor Coady is grinning broadly as he chats to the referee.
07:53 PM GMT
Unal is looking lively
And Leicester have just cleared a shot from him off the line. Still 0-0 at the stadium formerly known as Dean Court.
07:47 PM GMT
The Ewood queues
07:45 PM GMT
At Vitality Stadium
Stolarczyk has to be alert to race out of his area and boot the ball clear before Unal could pounce from 20 yards.
07:43 PM GMT
Ewood farce
It is really annoying when kick off is delayed because there is not enough time to get fans into the stadium. It’s not like Blackburn did not know that there were more than 7000 Newcastle fans in the Darwen End this evening. They knew how many tickets they had sold and there were similar problems in the previous round against Wrexham.
Anyway, we have a delay in the action. This feels like a must win fixture for Newcastle United and manager Eddie Howe after a difficult spell stretching back to the start of December. Howe has named a strong side and the bench looks the strongest it has done since October as a crippling injury list begins to ease.
Joe Willock starts for the first time since November and he should add some much needed dynamism to a pedestrian looking midfield. He is my player to keep an eye on this evening.
07:40 PM GMT
Enes Unal demands the ball from a 25-yard free-kick
And thumps his shot over the bar.
07:39 PM GMT
They have kicked off at Vitality Stadium
Leicester began threateningly but Bournemouth have seized control with Ouattara to the fore.
07:33 PM GMT
Kick-off at Ewood has been delayed by 15 minutes
Problems with a turnstile apparently.
07:30 PM GMT
Ties to be decided tonight
FYI no replays.
07:28 PM GMT
Luton and Man City in black and white
Luton Krul, Mengi, Burke, Bell, Ogbene, Clark, Barkley, Doughty, Morris, Chong, Woodrow.
Subtitutes Hashioka, Shea, Osho, Berry, Mpanzu, Townsend, Johnson, Nelson, Piesold.
Man City Ortega, Walker, Stones, Akanji, Ake, Kovacic, Matheus Luiz, Bernardo Silva, De Bruyne, Grealish, Haaland. Subtitutes Dias, Doku, Rodri, Alvarez, Gomez, Ederson, Foden, Bobb, Lewis.
Referee Anthony Taylor (Cheshire)
07:05 PM GMT
Tim Krul gets a run out in the Hatters’ goal
Your Emirates FA Cup Hatters 🫡 pic.twitter.com/55n3DNBnFI
— Luton Town FC (@LutonTown) February 27, 2024
07:04 PM GMT
De Bruyne and Grealish start for City
Your City squad tonight! 🩵
XI | Ortega Moreno, Walker (C), Stones, Akanji, Ake, Kovacic, Nunes, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Grealish, Haaland
SUBS | Ederson, Dias, Doku, Rodrigo, Alvarez, Gomez, Foden, Bobb, Lewis#ManCity | @etihad pic.twitter.com/mvGnBiwJya— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 27, 2024
06:57 PM GMT
Bournemouth vs Leicester
AFC Bournemouth Travers; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Scott, Cook; Ouattara, Billing, Sinisterra, Unal.
Substitutes Mepham, Faivre, Christie, Tavernier, Kluivert, Andrei Radu, Semenyo, Kinsey-Wellings.
Leicester Stolarczyk; Choudhury, Vestergaard, Coady Doyle; Praet, Raikhy; Akgun, Albrighton; Cannon, Marcal-Madivadua.
Substitutes Ward, Justin, Iheanacho, Souttar, Fatawu, Ricardo Pereira, Nelson, Thomas, Briggs.
Referee Paul Tierney (Wigan)
06:55 PM GMT
Blackburn vs Newcastle in black and white
Blackburn Pears; Hyam, McFadzean, Wharton; Brittain, Buckley, Moran, Chrisene; Szmodics, Dolan; Gallagher.
Substitutes Pickering, Sigurdsson, Wahlstedt, Koumetio, Markanday, Garrett, Telalovic, Finneran, Ayari.
Newcastle Dubravka; Trippier, Lascelles, Schar, Burn; Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, Willock; Jacob Murphy, Isak, Gordon. Substitutes Ritchie, Barnes, Krafth, Karius, Hall, Livramento, Almiron, Anderson, Miley.
Referee Jarred Gillett (Australia)
06:50 PM GMT
Leicester make nine changes
Tonight's @EmiratesFACup XI 📝#BOULEI pic.twitter.com/JI5LMZA6dp
— Leicester City (@LCFC) February 27, 2024
06:49 PM GMT
Enes Unal starts for Bournemouth
A full debut for Enes Ünal 🙌
Our team to face Leicester City 👇 pic.twitter.com/SwHS3XttDJ— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) February 27, 2024
06:48 PM GMT
Two changes for Blackburn Rovers
🔢 Team news!
2⃣ changes.
✅ Ben Chrisene & Andrew Moran start.
🤕 Sondre Tronstad (ankle) & Ryan Hedges (groin) miss out.
🌹 Our youngest-ever appearance maker Rory Finneran makes the bench.#ROVvNEW | #Rovers 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/w9uCO6DjZr— Blackburn Rovers (@Rovers) February 27, 2024
06:47 PM GMT
Dubravka returns for Newcastle
HOWAY THE LADS! ✊ pic.twitter.com/wD1SSTig48
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) February 27, 2024
06:30 PM GMT
Preview: No replays
Good evening and welcome to live coverage of tonight’s three FA Cup fifth round ties with a place in the last eight up for grabs for the winners. The match between the two six-time winners Blackburn Rovers (last Cup win 1928) and Newcastle United (1955) will be our principal focus as John Eustace takes on Eddie Howe as Newcastle try to make it into the sixth round for only the second time in 18 years and open up a different route to a European spot next season given their injury travails, slump in league form and Saturday’s thrashing by Arsenal.
The 7.30pm tie features Premier League Bournemouth, who have been to the quarter-final but no further in 1957 and 2021, taking on the Championship leaders Leicester City, winners for the only time in 2021. Andoni Iraola is certainly looking forward to it: “I think it’s a good chance for us. It’s a great chance, also a challenge, but a win tomorrow, I think it’s very nice to have the chance to be in the last eight, but also we know that it’s going to be a big challenge because we are facing a very big team.
“We don’t have a lot of time [to prepare], but I think Leicester are playing really, really well. I think they are showing that they are the best team in the Championship. I expect a very difficult game, but I hope we are at our best level and then we will have chances.”
Iraola confirmed defender Lloyd Kelly will remain unavailable for Bournemouth’s first FA Cup meeting with the Foxes, while Philip Billing will return from his three-match suspension after he was sent off in the 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest.
Finally, Man City, the holders, travel to ‘the Kenny’ to play Luton Town, who were finalists just the once under Syd Owen in 1959. No question of priorities for Pep Guardiola as he targets another Treble: “Tomorrow is a final, like every game in Premier League and of course in Champions League. The decisive part of the season is here ahead of us, in front of us, not far away, and we are going for it.
“It’s better to play for this than being 10th in the table and [having] no chance for that. The feeling is that if you lose – bye-bye. It’s so nice.”