FA Cup quarter-final updates from the 12.15pm GMT kick-offRob Smyth: when Manchester United were nation’s darlingsAnd you can email Scott with your thoughts 11.35am GMT Pre-match pint and pie / vegan sausage roll. Related: Watford’s Adrian Mariappa: ‘I can’t see myself going back to eating meat’ 11.25am GMT After the free-jazz selection stylings of the Etihad, Watford make eight changes, reverting to old ways. Heurelho Gomes, Adrian Mariappa, Craig Cathcart, Jose Holebas, Will Hughes, Roberto Pereyra, Gerard Deulofeu and Troy Deeney return; they take the places of Ben Foster, Darryl Janmaat, Miguel Britos, Adam Masina, Christian Kabasele, Tom Cleverley, Isaac Success and Andre Gray.Palace are relatively unchanged by comparison. Just the three switches from the starting XI for the Brighton game. Martin Kelly, Cheikhou Kouyate and Max Meyer come in for Patrick van Aanholt, Scott Dann and Wilfried Zaha. 11.25am GMT Watford: Gomes, Kiko, Mariappa, Cathcart, Holebas, Hughes, Doucoure, Capoue, Pereyra, Deulofeu, Deeney.Subs: Dahlberg, Kabasele, Janmaat, Masina, Cleverley, Success, Gray.Crystal Palace: Guaita, Wan-Bissaka, Kelly, Tomkins, Schlupp, Milivojevic, Kouyate, Meyer, McArthur, Townsend, Batshuayi.Subs: Hennessey, Ward, Woods, Riedewald, Wickham, Benteke, Ayew. 10.51am GMT The Eagles have broken Hornet hearts a couple of times recently. Crystal Palace pipped Watford to promotion in the 2013 Championship play-off, Kevin Phillips doing the business from the spot in extra time; then they won again at Wembley in the 2016 FA Cup semis, Yannick Bolasie and Connor Wickham the goalscoring heroes in a 2-1 victory. A couple of crunch victories there. Can Palace make it three in a row?Perhaps, though the omens are otherwise good for Watford. The Hornets have won their last three FA Cup quarter-finals, in 2003, 2007 and 2016. They’ve not been defeated at Vicarage Road in the cup since Spurs won there in 2012, a run of five successive victories. They’ve never lost at home to Palace in the cup. And Javi Gracia’s side have already beaten Roy Hodgson’s men twice in the league this season, 2-1 on both occasions. Continue readingreadfullarticle
