FA Cup 4th-round draw: Chelsea hosts ambitious Brentford
Seven-hundred-and-thirty-six teams have been whittled down to an FA Cup fourth-round stage that will feature just 32 sides.
Monday's draw, picked out by former England internationals Michael Owen and Martin Keown, included an interesting clash between Chelsea and local upstart Brentford, a club whose statistic-obsessed owner, Matthew Benham, is influenced by Billy Beane, the Moneyball-coining general manager of MLB franchise Oakland Athletics.
Sutton United, marooned in mid-table in the fifth tier, is the lowest-ranked side left in the competition, and if it wins at AFC Wimbledon in a third-round replay it will earn a tie with Leeds United.
Lincoln City, currently topping Sutton's division, grabbed a commendable draw at second-tier Ipswich Town on Saturday, and if it wins the reverse fixture on Jan. 17 it will host Championship high-flyer Brighton & Hove Albion in the fourth round.
Here is the draw in full:
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Wycombe Wanderers
Derby County vs. Leicester City
Oxford United vs. Newcastle United or Birmingham City
AFC Wimbledon or Sutton United vs. Leeds United
Plymouth Argyle or Liverpool vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers
Southampton or Norwich City vs. Arsenal
Lincoln City or Ipswich Town vs. Brighton & Hove Albion
Chelsea vs. Brentford
Manchester United vs. Wigan Athletic
Millwall vs. Watford
Rochdale vs. Huddersfield Town
Burnley or Sunderland vs. Fleetwood Town or Bristol City
Blackburn Rovers vs. Barnsley or Blackpool
Fulham vs. Hull City
Middlesbrough vs. Accrington Stanley
Crystal Palace or Bolton Wanderers vs. Manchester City
The matches will be played over the weekend of Jan. 27-30, 2017.