Manager news conferences taking place before FA Cup quarter-final weekend
Quarter-final matches and where to watch: Fulham v Palace, Brighton v Forest, Preston v Villa & Bournemouth v Man City
Man City manager Pep Guardiola says he, his staff and players 'don't deserve' the proposed £97m prize money on offer at the Club World Cup
Other managers also speaking to the media including Iraola, Silva, Glasner, Heckingbottom and Emery - all over the next few hours
Team news: Mateta ready to return, Dunk back for Brighton, Ederson training with Man City, Tavernier for Bournemouth
Talking point: Is this the most open quarter-final for years? There are none of the five most successful FA Cup clubs in the last-eight
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And that is your lot on this fine sunny Friday.
Thank you as always for joining us today.
All the big talking points from today's FA Cup quarter-final news conferences, along with anything else you've missed, can be found by clicking on the summary points at the top of this page.
We'll be back with you on Monday to dissect this weekend's action as the final eight become the final four.
Until then though, have a good one.
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As a neutral, I'm really looking forward to the FA Cup this weekend. With all the discussion around recently around the ridiculous Club World Cup, the new Champions League format and the UEFA Nations League, it's so refreshing to enjoy a good ol' fashioned competition still going strong! I really hope the aforementioned competitions don't ruin our beloved domestic cup in the years ahead! I always route for the underdog, so I hope Man City go all the way!
Anders
I think this years FA Cup is the most exciting in years. It’s a cup that’s made exciting by upsets and the chance for a team to win it for the first time this year is brilliant.
Anon
Fulham v Crystal Palace (Sat, 12:15 GMT)
Remember earlier when we reflected on that Alan Pardew dance.
Well, we couldn't close out today's live without digging it up, could we?
It won't be much of a consolation to Crystal Palace fans but it did leave the rest of the football world with a moment for the ages.
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Jermaine Beckford
Former Leeds, Leicester and Everton striker on BBC Football News Show
Image source, Getty ImagesJermaine Beckford waxed lyrical about Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta and how crucial he is to Palace:
"What a player. What I love about watching Mateta is that he is a good old fashioned number nine.
"He is physical, he bullies defenders, he is great in the air, he gets the ball down, he finds himself getting in behind the defenders, he isn't afraid in a foot race either, he is no slouch and we are s seeing the leadership skills and qualities that he is starting to possess coming to fruition.
"I enjoying watching him, he's a throwback."
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Another vote here for a Villa v Bournemouth final. Me, my wife and two kids are season ticket holders at Villa Park but have lived in Bournemouth for 5 years so would be a great end to the season. We would however have to play the reserves as we will be facing a tough Champions League Final with Barcelona in Munich a couple of weeks later.
Andy
Fulham v Crystal Palace (Sat, 12:15 GMT)
Fulham boss Marco Silva on Mateta's potential return: "I think we have to be strong against the stronger sides. If you want to reach the semi-finals you have to beat the strongest possible Palace side. They are stronger with Jean-Philippe Mateta."
Fulham v Crystal Palace (Sat, 12:15 GMT)
Fulham boss Marco Silva on team news: "The same three players are out. Harry Wilson, Reiss Nelson and Kenny Tete. Tete is out because he is not fit enough for the game, but he's already working with the team."
Ahhh would you look at that, we've finally got some Marco Silva to bring you!
He kicked his news conference off with a bit of team news before Fulham's quarter-final tie against Crystal Palace.
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How many neutrals would prefer to see Preston win the FA Cup? Can’t wait to be buying my semi final ticket for Wembley, we’re going all the way!
Jack, London
We'll ask the question for you then, Jack. If you're a neutral (no cheating), thumbs up if Preston would be your choice to win the FA Cup. Thumbs down if not.
Preston North End v Aston Villa (Sun, 13:30 BST)
Preston North End
Preston North End boss Paul Heckingbottom: "The preparation is the same, you try and get the same outcome which is a win. I also know we have a game two days later so we have to prepare for them too. You're just constantly on that Saturday Tuesday grind.
"This is the third Premier League team coming to Deepdale this season so it's not new. I think the occasion is different and the intensity Villa will bring is different simply because of the stage of the competition.
"We're saying we're excited to be a game away from Wembley, the clubs not been at this stage for many, many years and that's our prize.
"Villa are probably looking at it as a realistic chance of silverware. We're playing against a highly-motivated team that are in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. But what have we got to lose? We just have to play our best game."
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Preston, Forest and Villa all in with a chance of being the first club to win the FA Cup in three different centuries. Now that's football pedigree.
Cris
Preston v Aston Villa (Sun, 13:30BST)
Preston midfielder Stefan Thordarson about his side's preparations before the quarter-final fixture against Aston Villa:
"It'll be a test of the highest levels. Every single one of us will have to have one of the best games of the season to have a chance against a team like Aston Villa. They are a world class team with internationals in every position so we'll have to do everything in our power to stop what they do.
"We have to be very clinical, we have to take our chances when we get them and we have to hold them to lower chances and hopefully we will get some good free-kicks and some good corners and take our free-kicks very well. We will be well prepared."
Image source, Getty ImagesManchester City and Aston Villa are the two sides who remain in the FA Cup with the most competition pedigree.
City and Villa have both won the FA Cup seven times but have very different recent histories.
Pep Guardiola's side last won the famous trophy in 2023 while Villa haven't lifted it since 1957.
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For me the best final would be Villa v Bournemouth two teams that, apart from their immediate rivals, most neutrals seem to like. Both teams play good football and both managers seem like good guys. Would be a nice 'feel good' final for the end of the season.
Anon
Image source, Getty ImagesTwo of this year's FA Cup quarter-final games are complete firsts.
Incredibly, Bournemouth and Manchester City, as well as Brighton and Nottingham Forest have never faced each other in the FA Cup's entire history.
It's only the second time ever that the Cherries have faced City in any cup competition, having lost their only other match 2-1 in the 2020 League Cup.
Brighton have also faced Forest in the League Cup previously, in the 1977-78 and 1986-87 seasons.
And, while it may not be the first time Fulham and Crystal Palace have faced in the FA Cup, it will be for any current fan of the two sides.
The last time those two met in the FA Cup was back in 1907, with Palace winning a second-round replay 1-0.
Fulham v Crystal Palace (Sat, 12:15 GMT)
Oliver Glasner confirmed that Jean-Phillipe Mateta is 'ready' to return for FA Cup action this weekend.
On the rest of his squad's fitness, he said: “The positive thing is all players are fit and available – just Will Hughes is questionable.
“He’s a bit sick, so let’s see how the afternoon and the night will be.
“But all others arrived back from the national teams in very good shape, and all the players who are here are fit.
“It’s just Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucouré who are out for the rest of the season. All others are ready.”
In case you missed the rush of media conferences at lunchtime, don't fret - here's the leading news lines from the managers speaking ahead of the FA Cup this weekend:
If you missed your team's media conference earlier and want to know who is available for the FA Cup quarter-finals this weekend - never fear, we have you covered:
Preston v Aston Villa (Sun,13:30 BST)
Image source, Getty ImagesAs two of his former clubs aim to scale new heights in the FA Cup this weekend, Simon Grayson is getting ready to conquer his fears 4,500 miles away in Nepal.
"The scariest thing they've mentioned is going to Everest base camp, which is a two-hour helicopter ride away," the former Preston North End manager and Aston Villa player tells BBC Sport from Kathmandu.
"I'm not one for seeking thrills or anything like that."
Grayson is a four-time promotion-winning boss closing in on 800 games as a manager.
His latest challenge has taken the Yorkshireman to South Asia where he is in charge of Lalitpur City for the 2025 Nepal Super League season, which starts on Saturday.
The following day Preston battle with Villa for a place at Wembley in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
Chris Sutton
BBC Sport football expert
Preston are hard to beat at home and have not lost at Deepdale since 2 November, a run of 15 games.
I've seen quite a bit of Paul Heckingbottom's team this season and they will defend deep, set up in a 3-5-2 shape and make themselves hard to break down.
It's an old football cliche, but in this case it is very true that the first goal will be extremely important.
Aston Villa have got some brilliant attacking players, but I also always feel like teams can score against them.
If they go behind, they could have problems but I do feel their quality should see them through - depending on Unai Emery's team selection of course, with a big league game coming up at Brighton on Wednesday.
Villa have got their eyes on numerous prizes and there probably hasn't been excitement levels like this at the club since Martin O'Neill signed me in 2006.
I'm still backing them here, but it is going to be a cagey game, and they might have to wait to make the breakthrough before a couple of late goals get the job done.
I'm going for Emi Martinez to keep a clean sheet, too. His keepie-uppie antics to wind up Brazil while playing for Argentina this week were another reminder of why he is the best goalkeeper in the world. Anyone who can produce moments like that in a game of that magnitude deserves all the accolades you can get.
Sutton's prediction: 0-2
