Leeds suffered a humiliating FA Cup exit against Crawley as the League Two side swept to a shock 3-0 win, while Timo Werner ended his Chelsea goal drought and Bernardo Silva sparkled for Manchester City as the Premier League giants eased into the fourth round on Sunday.
After the spiking coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc with matches across the third round on Friday and Saturday, the FA Cup was back on more familiar ground as Leeds became the competition’s latest big name to be knocked out by a feisty underdog.
Crawley’s unexpected success encapsulated the FA Cup’s unique charm and football’s restorative powers at a time when the sport is badly in need of some positive news.
Numerous clubs have been hit by Covid-19 problems as the new variant sweeps across Britain, forcing Aston Villa and Derby to field entire teams of youth players while their senior stars went into self-isolation.
Villa’s kids were beaten by Liverpool on Friday and Derby’s youngsters lost to…