1) Brighton’s Goldson deserves the plaudits
Amid the focus on Brighton’s first quarter-final appearance for 32 years and an impressive first outing for Jürgen Locadia, Chis Hughton was keen to hail one of his team’s more unsung heroes. Connor Goldson scored a well-directed header in the first half and it was the centre-back’s first goal since returning from surgery on a heart defect, which ruled him out of the closing months of their promotion season. This was Goldson’s sixth appearance of this campaign; Hughton hoped to loan him to Ipswich in August but could not source appropriate cover and the 25-year-old, far more involved since December, is beginning to grow in stature. “Connor has earned it and everyone knows what we think about him,” Hughton said. “He has knuckled down, made a full recovery. Credit to our medical staff here in the first place.” He might just have earned himself a place in Hughton’s last-eight team at Manchester United. Nick Ames
2) Ampadu continues to improve as a first-team player
This time last year a 16-year-old Ethan Ampadu was preparing for his GCSEs. Exeter City not only exposed him to his first taste of professional football at 15 years,10 months and 26 days but also handled his development superbly, sheltering him from the spotlight and giving the Devon-born defender time to prioritise his school exams. He made only three appearances between October 2016 and April 2017 before joining Chelsea last summer. Twelve months on, Ampadu continues to shimmer with every game he plays, the latest of which came against Hull City. Ampadu barely broke sweat – even in the stickiest of situations – such is his effortless, calm nature, epitomised when he controlled an awkward ball with his knees before looping a beautiful pass for Willian. He is also unafraid to impose himself in the challenge. Ampadu oozes class and it is clear Antonio Conte trusts the teenager, who simply gets better with every outing. Ben Fisher
3) Pellegrino defends West Brom players over ‘taxigate’
Mauricio Pellegrino spoke out in defence of players who need to let off steam occasionally after his Southampton team’s fifth-round win against a West Brom side engulfed in the wake of ‘taxigate’. Jonny Evans was stripped of the captaincy but otherwise Alan Pardew, the head coach, did not alter his team selection after the furore that erupted after four players broke a curfew on a team bonding trip to Barcelona last week and ‘stole’ a taxi to drive back from a fastfood outlet to their team hotel at 5.30am. “I think the players here are very professional,” Pellegrino said. “I was a player at Liverpool, too. I know a lot of British players in my dressing room. They are all very professional because the pressure for them is to be out there on the pitch, to be on top of preparation, to be on top of nutrition, to rest – it is really hard to play at this level. Sometimes they have the right to enjoy themselves.” Peter Lansley
4) Plight of Coventry must not be forgotten
Coventry departed the FA Cup with the goodwill and admiration of everybody watching. Mark Robins’s team, which contained five academy products, gave it a real go at Brighton and although they fell short it should provide optimism for the revival of a faltering League Two promotion campaign. Usually, when we talk about a minnow, that is it: farewell, well played and good luck. But Coventry’s plight needs to remain in the spotlight: their long-term prospects remain uncertain under the owners Sisu, who appear to be holding on to the club to no positive end, and they must not be allowed to drift away from the conversation again. If Robins can get them back up to the third tier it would help but the greater battles, one of which still involves their future at the Ricoh Arena, are still to come. The 4,500 supporters who sang their hearts out at the Amex Stadium deserve far better than all they have endured; those in charge must be held to account until they start doing right by such a historic institution. Nick Ames
• Match report: Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 Coventry City
5) Hull’s injury-hit season gets worse
Things do not get any easier for Hull City and Nigel Adkins. Without many first-team players through injury and suspension, plus three Chelsea defenders – all ineligible to play against their parent club – Hull’s squad was further depleted by the time Chelsea had breezed to a 4-0 victory at Stamford Bridge on Friday evening. On-loan Liverpool winger Harry Wilson was forced off with a feared dislocated shoulder while top scorer Jarrod Bowen missed the trip altogether after pulling out of training with a hamstring complaint last Wednesday. The 21-year-old striker has been one of few positives from a dismal season and it seems the problems are only mounting, with the club one point above the relegation zone and their Championship status in a perilous state with 15 games still to play. “It’s another worry,” Adkins said, whose side travel to Middlesbrough on Tuesday night. Ben Fisher
• Match report: Chelsea 4-0 Hull City
6) Victor Lindelöf’s comeback gathers pace
The nadir for Victor Lindelöf came at the John Smith’s Stadium. Manchester United conceded two goals within 10 minutes of his introduction in October. One represented a glaring error from a £31.5m defender who seemed intimidated by the intensity of Huddersfield in particular and English football in general. This rematch felt redemptive, with the Swede growing in confidence as the game progressed. If it was tempting to wonder what José Mourinho was saying to him when the cameras arrowed in on them in the tunnel before kick-off, after the final whistle the manager’s words were complimentary. “Huddersfield pushed us to good defensive work,” he said. “Victor and Chris [Smalling] were really good.” With Mourinho suggesting Marcos Rojo and Phil Jones are likely to miss Wednesday’s Champions League tie with Sevilla, and Eric Bailly having played only a couple of minutes’ football in three months, Lindelöf may have to show such defiance again against superior opposition. Richard Jolly
7) Leicester can go all out for first FA Cup triumph
Leicester City’s four FA Cup final defeats make them the club to have appeared most in English football’s showpiece game without ever tasting victory. Given their exploits in the Premier League two seasons ago, their chances of putting that unwanted record to bed under Claude Puel must be higher than ever. A slow start and the disruption caused by Manchester City’s attempt to sign Riyad Mahrez has probably put paid to their chances of qualifying for European competition next season via the Premier League, so there is no reason for Puel to hold back against Chelsea in the sixth round of the Cup. Finding a settled combination in defence – the manager has alternated between formations in recent matches – will be the key to success if Mahrez and Jamie Vardy continue to dazzle up front. Ed Aarons
• Match report: Leicester City 1-0 Sheffield United
8) Wagner’s Huddersfield staying true to themselves
There was a sense that Huddersfield recaptured their identity in recent big wins over Birmingham and Bournemouth. As David Wagner listed the qualities that comprise his blueprint for survival – desire, energy, commitment – he spoke about the gegenpressing game that brought promotion and galvanised the crowd. A raucous atmosphere indicated how much the supporters enjoyed front-foot football. It comes with a risk – Huddersfield’s offside trap was even breached by Juan Mata – and they had been sufficiently spooked in autumn that they had started to adopt a lower block, including in both earlier meetings with United this season. But caution had led to tame, timid performances. Another up-tempo display on Saturday allowed Wagner to be upbeat. “The players are in the right direction, confidence-wise,” he said. “We have the momentum we wanted.” Huddersfield have 11 games to go. The sense is that, whether they stay up or go down, they will be true to themselves, playing the style of football that defines them. Richard Jolly
• Match report: Huddersfield Town 0-2 Manchester United
9) Rochdale team and supporters feed off each other
One of the FA Cup’s problems, perhaps, is that with blanket television coverage it is harder than it used to be to ignore those games when a bigger side casually dismisses a smaller one. But there is still a magic to games such as this fifth-round tie, when the lower‑division side causes a giant problem in front of a raucous crowd in a tight stadium, when there is a sense that something is happening that the home fans will never forget. Amid the introspection and self‑doubt in which the competition seems permanently to exist, Rochdale’s performance was a valuable reminder of why the FA Cup remains important. Jonathan Wilson
• Match report: Rochdale 2-2 Tottenham
10) Swansea and Sheffield Wednesday left with unwanted game
Carlos Carvalhal had a brainwave. Swansea’s manager thought that, with the score 0-0 after 90 minutes, he and his Wednesday counterpart, Jos Luhukay, should have been allowed to agree to settle the tie on penalties immediately. “It’s just an opinion,” said the Portuguese. “But both Wednesday and ourselves didn’t want a replay.” With Swansea desperate to stay in the Premier League and Luhukay fretting about injuries, Championship form and a league fixture glut, neither manager can afford to care about the Cup. The sense of romance it once engendered has turned to wearisome obligation. An underwhelming afternoon was lifted only by stellar displays from a Wednesday trio. While Daniel Pudil excelled in Luhukay’s back three, the attacking midfielder Adam Reach impressed and Cameron Dawson showed immense promise in goal. Louise Taylor
