Guardiola seeks FA Cup lift

A POTENTIAL FA Cup banana skin awaits Pep Guardiola as he takes his inconsistent Manchester City team to Crystal Palace in the fourth round tomorrow.

This month’s results tell the tale of City’s erratic form, with Guardiola’s men cruising to a 5-0 win at West Ham United in the FA Cup third round, only to then crash to a 4-0 Premier League defeat at Everton.

They appeared to have found form again last weekend, going 2-0 up at home to in-form Tottenham Hotspur, but conceded two second-half goals to draw 2-2.

The Palace-City encounter is one of only two all-Premier League ties to have been pulled out of the hat, with Arsenal’s trip to Southampton the other.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is facing a ban after being charged with misconduct for pushing the fourth official during his side’s last-gasp 2-1 win over Burnley last weekend.

Southampton will be buoyed by having reached the League Cup final in midweek by knocking out Liverpool.

The Merseysiders, who needed a replay to see off fourth-tier Plymouth Argyle in the third round, welcome Wolverhampton Wanderers to Anfield tomorrow.

Chelsea face a west London derby at home to Championship side Brentford, while Tottenham entertain fourth-tier Wycombe Wanderers. – AFP Fixtures: Tonight: Derby v Leicester Tomorrow: Blackburn v Blackpool, Burnley v Bristol City, Chelsea v Brentford, Crystal Palace v Manchester City, Lincoln v Brighton, Liverpool v Wolves, Middlesbrough v Accrington, Oxford v Newcastle, Rochdale v Huddersfield, Southampton v Arsenal, Tottenham v Wycombe

Sunday: Fulham v Hull, Manchester Uunited v Wigan, Millwall v Watford, Sutton v Leeds