FA Cup holders Chelsea win but Burnley go out

Published>Sat, Jan 23 10 11:49 PM

Holders Chelsea booked their place in the FA Cup fifth round with a 2-0 victory at Preston North End on Saturday while Premier League Burnley suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat at second-tier Reading.

Premier League Wigan Athletic escaped with a 2-2 draw at League Two (fourth division) Notts County after trailing 2-0 and Wolverhampton Wanderers needed a late equaliser to draw 2-2 at home to Championship (second division) Crystal Palace.

Fulham had some tricky moments before winning 3-1 at Accrington Stanley while League Cup finalists Aston Villa had to work hard to advance with a 3-2 defeat of third-tier Brighton and Hove Albion at Villa Park.

Birmingham City stretched their unbeaten run in all competitions to 15 with an impressive 2-1 win at Everton and in another all top-flight clash Portsmouth guaranteed some much-needed income with a 2-1 home victory over Sunderland.

Five-times winners Chelsea took the lead when Nicolas Anelka shot powerfully past keeper Andy Lonergan in the 36th minute before doubling their advantage when Daniel Sturridge finished from close range two minutes after the restart.

OPEN GOAL

Championship side Preston, who are managed by Darren Ferguson, son of Manchester United boss Alex, missed a gilt-edged chance when Darren Carter shot over an open goal in the first half.

"We found it hard in the first half but that's what the FA Cup is all about," Chelsea captain John Terry told ITV.

"It's been an amazing day. When you come to grounds like this it's what the Cup is all about, smaller clubs giving their all."

Championship strugglers Reading, who beat Liverpool at Anfield in the previous round, secured another big scalp with an 88th-minute goal from Gylfi Sigurdsson.

Two sides battling for promotion back to the Premier League met at the Hawthorns where West Bromwich Albion beat Championship leaders Newcastle United 4-2.

After two successive Premier League defeats by Arsenal, Owen Coyle enjoyed his first victory as Bolton Wanderers manager when his side beat Championship team Sheffield United 2-0 at the Reebok Stadium.

In a late kickoff League One Leeds United will hope to follow-up their third-round victory at Manchester United when they play eight-times FA Cup winners Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane.

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