Port Vale Host Sunderland in FA Cup Fifth Round After Bristol City Win
Port Vale will host Sunderland at Vale Park in an FA Cup fifth-round tie after beating Bristol City in extra time to reach this stage for the first time since 1996. Kick-off is at 13: 30 GMT (8: 30 a. m. ET) Sunday, and the match matters because a win would send Vale into the quarter-finals.
Port Vale and Andre Gray Lift Cup Hopes at Vale Park
port vale reached the last 16 by beating Championship side Bristol City with Ben Waine’s 111st-minute winner in extra time, an outcome that thrust the club into the spotlight. The 34-year-old striker Andre Gray, who joined Vale a month ago from Fatih Karagumruk, provided the pass that released Waine for the decisive goal, and Gray has spoken about his experience in big cup occasions this season.
More than 10, 000 tickets have been sold for the Sunderland tie, with attendance expected to brush the 12, 000 mark at Vale Park in Burslem. Manager Jon Brady confirmed a relatively clean bill of health after the midweek win and is expected to name an unchanged starting XI, with Hall, Walters and Shipley all available for the biggest game of Port Vale’s season so far.
Sunderland and Régis Le Bris Face a 10-Player Selection Crisis
Sunderland arrive with a stretched squad: Régis Le Bris has 10 first-team players unavailable, including two suspensions for Trai Hume and Noah Sadiki. The visitors’ injury list names Bertrand Traoré (knee), Robin Roefs (hamstring), Nordi Mukiele (calf), Brian Brobbey (groin), Dennis Cirkin (hamstring), Reinildo (knee), Romain Mundle (hamstring) and Jocelin Ta Bi (ankle).
Le Bris’s side come to Vale Park buoyed by a vital 1–0 Premier League victory over Leeds United on Tuesday, a result that snapped an inconsistent run of form. Sunderland have advanced past Everton and Oxford United in this FA Cup campaign but remain reliant on set-pieces: both of their FA Cup goals this season have come from dead-ball situations, and they are the only team remaining in the fifth round yet to score from open play.
Predicted XIs: Gauci, Shipley, Ellborg and Isidor Featured in Forecasts
Preview line-ups list Gauci in goal for Port Vale with Hall, Gabriel, Archer and Walters across the back and Magloire leading the attack in a predicted 4-2-3-1. Sunderland’s forecast places Ellborg in goal with Geertruida, Ballard, Alderete and O’Nien in defence and Isidor up front in a matching 4-2-3-1.
Recent head-to-heads favor Sunderland, who have won the last six meetings in all competitions and have been resilient away, winning two and drawing one of their last three road fixtures. Port Vale, however, have tightened defensively with two clean sheets in their last three games and will seek to use home momentum and a buoyant crowd to force an upset.
KICK-OFF: The match kicks off at 13: 30 GMT (8: 30 a. m. ET) Sunday, with coverage beginning at 13: 00 GMT (8: 00 a. m. ET).
