FA Cup: Can Newport Pull Off The Greatest Upset Of All Time?

The standout tie in this weekend’s FA Cup fourth round, takes place at Rodney Parade where Newport County will host Manchester United. 

After beating Eastleigh in the last round, League Two side Newport have a chance to add their name to a long list of FA Cup shocks throughout the competition’s 143-year history.

There are 73 places between the two sides and a win for the Welsh side would surely rank as one of the greatest cup shocks of all time.

Newport can be backed at 33/1 with some football betting sites, in a game Manchester United will be expected to win comfortably. 

However, this has not been a great season for United or manager Erik ten Hag, whose future is hanging in the balance.

The tie has been given the prime time slot of 16:30 on Sunday afternoon and BBC will expect a big audience watching the tie. 

How do the two sides compare?

The biggest gap between Newport and Manchester United comes in the value of the squad. 

The Newport team that beat Wrexham 1-0 in their last game cost nothing in transfer fees, as all 11 players are either loan signings or were free transfers. The United side that drew 2-2 with Tottenham in their last game cost £270.8m.

Based on figures from Transfermarkt, those teams are valued at £1.7m for Newport and £321.1m for the Old Trafford side. 

The United team doesn’t includes five-time Champions League winning midfielder Casemiro or Argentina’s World Cup winning defender Lisandro Martinez, who have missed a lot of the season through injury, but both could feature this weekend. 

Bryn Morris is Newport's highest valued player at £192,000. Many of United's star-studded squad including Raphael Varane, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford earn more than that a week.

United Don't Want History To Repeat Itself

The FA Cup shows little respect to reputation. Cup shocks happen and some of the biggest clubs have fallen victim, including the Red Devils.

In January 1984, the cup holders were drawn away to Bournemouth in the third round of the FA Cup. A packed Dean Court watched one of the biggest cup upsets in the competition's history. 

Goals from Milton Graham and Ian Thompson gave the Cherries, managed by Harry Redknapp, a famous win against a United side that included Bryan Robson, Arnold Muhren and Norman Whiteside who all scored to beat Brighton in the FA Cup Final replay the previous season.

According to UK betting sites, Newport have little chance of progressing to the fifth round this weekend. 

But this is a chance of a lifetime for Newport to cause one of the greatest upsets in the competition's history. It's also a chance to put themselves in the shop window if they have aspirations of playing in a higher league.

Newport Have Sights Set On Fifth Round

Newport County are aiming to reach the fifth round for only the third time in their history. The last time they got that far was five seasons ago.

In the third round that season, the League Two club showed their cup pedigree by dumping Premier League side Leicester out of the cup after a 4-1 win for the Exiles. 

A trip to Middlesbrough followed in round four and after Matt Dolan's injury time goal forced a replay in a 1-1 draw at the Riverside Stadium, Newport won the replay 2-0. 

Newport's remarkable cup run that season came to an end in the fifth round, when they lost 4-1 at home to Manchester City, who went on to beat Watford 6-0 in the final.