Nottingham Forest have, Chris Wood and Morgan Gibbs-White aside, named a strong side. Ipswich have not, with manager Kieran McKenna obviously (and sadly) prioritising Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace.
The teams!
Nottingham Forest: Sels, Aina, Murillo, Morato, Alex, Danilo, Sangare, Elanga, Yates, Hudson-Odoi, Awoniyi.
Subs: Hennessey, Williams, Anderson, Wood, Gibbs-White, Dominguez, Jota Silva, Sosa, Boly.
Ipswich: Palmer, Tuanzebe, Woolfenden, Burgess, Johnson, Jack Taylor, Morsy, Luongo, Townsend, Hirst, Broadhead.
Subs: Muric, O’Shea, Greaves, Davis, Cajuste, Philogene-Bidace, Clarke, Delap, Tom Taylor.
Preamble
Cynics that believe in revenue and overheads and boring, financially-sensible things like that would say that both Nottingham Forest and Ipswich Town need a run deep into the FA Cup like a hole in the head. But there’s Champions League qualification/Premier League survival to fight for, one might hear a chief executive shout, somewhere.
Those that believe in glory and winning-at-all-costs and silverware and making trophy-starved fans happy might beg to differ. Margaret Thatcher was still prime minister when Nottingham Forest last won a major trophy (the 1990 League Cup) 35 years ago. Ipswich haven’t won a thing since 1992, the Football League Second Division title, and not a major trophy since the 1980–81 Uefa Cup.
Even with the league season approaching the home straight, an FA Cup quarter-final tie against Brighton remains a tantalising prize for the victor of tonight’s last-16 tie, and this is a winnable game for both teams, although Forest are of course the favourites.
What’s more, with so many so-called bigger clubs already eliminated from this season’s competition, winning the whole damn thing – the FA Cup, just imagine! – is a realistic and overwhelming prospect!
Let’s hope both sides go for it.
Kick-off: 7.30pm GMT
