FA Cup Quarterfinals: Everton And Tottenham Through To Play Liverpool And Chelsea

FA Cup Quarterfinals, 2012: Tuesday Wrap

Everton and Tottenham Hotspur booked their passages to Wembley during Tuesday's FA Cup quarterfinal matches, beating Sunderland and Bolton Wanderers, respectively.

The situations leading up to the games were very different indeed -- Everton had been pegged back to a replay by a lively Sunderland nine days ago, while the Spurs-Bolton match was abandoned following Fabrice Muamba's cardiac arrest just before halftime at White Hart Lane that same weekend.

Sunderland Vs. Everton

Everton were battling for a spot against arch-nemeses Liverpool, and they were largely the better side at the Stadium of Light. Nikica Jelavić opened the scoring in the 24th minute, finishing off a cross from Magaye Gueye to give the visitors a deserved lead, but Sunderland looked dangerous on the break and threatened Tim Howard's goal on several occasions. That said, it was still Everton who looked more likely to score, and they wrapped things up just before the hour mark with a bizarre own goal:

That's some less-than-nice clearancing by David Vaughan. The Black Cats refused to give up, pushing for at least a consolation, but it was not to be and Everton go to the semifinals as 2-0 winners.

Tottenham Hotspur Vs. Bolton Wanderers

There's been a rush of good feeling in the Bolton camp as Fabrice Muamba continues to recover from the awful events of the earlier, abortive version of this game, but the cheery mood wasn't enough to overcome a strong Tottenham Hotspur side at home. After a tribute to the hospitalised midfielder, the match went basically as expected, with the hosts throwing bodies forward and the Trotters looking basically overwhelmed for much of the match.

That Bolton held out until the 74th minute was thanks to young goalkeeper Adam Bogdan, who pulled off a string of superb saves to keep the match scoreless. He wasn't getting much help from his teammates, but it looked as though he wasn't going to need any -- until former Blackburn Rovers captain Ryan Nelsen nodded home a corner kick to give Tottenham a 1-0 lead. It was two just a few minutes later, with Gareth Bale seemingly finishing things off with a low finish from 12 yards out.

Bolton weren't done though, and Kevin Davies handed them a lifeline in injury time after he slid past Carlo Cudicini from close range, but Louis Saha quelled all hopes of a comeback with a long-range effort to make it 3-1 in the dying moments. With the win, Tottenham book a place against Chelsea in the semifinals.

FA Cup Draw: Potential London, Merseyside Derbies In The Semifinal

If Everton and Tottenham progress in the FA Cup, both semifinals will be derbies, though neutrals (and a lot of Tottenham fans) will likely be rooting for Bolton to defeat Spurs.

Liverpool Vs. Stoke City, 2012 FA Cup: Reds Through To Wembley

Stoke City played their game in the first half and pushed Liverpool to the wire, but the Reds were the better side in the second half at Anfield and earned a 2-1 victory over the Potters to progress to the semifinal of the FA Cup, keeping alive their dream of winning two trophies this season.

Luis Suarez scored the opening goal for Liverpool with an absolutely stunning strike, weaving through three defenders before he curled a shot into the side netting from 20 yards on the 23rd minute. It took Stoke just three minutes to equalize, however, and Liverpool's marking was to blame. Inexplicably, the only man on the pitch who resembles a giraffe was left unmarked on a corner kick. Peter Crouch headed in the simple equalizer in the 26th minute.

Since Suarez -- whose finishing has been poor this year -- scored a stunner, the even more disappointing Stewart Downing decided to get in on the act with a fantastic goal. Steven Gerrard miscontrolled a ball to setup Downing, but it was an effective setup nonetheless, and the left winger buried a great finish in the 57th minute. Andy Carroll was not able to complete the bizzaro day hat trick.

Chelsea Vs. Leicester City, 2012 FA Cup Quarterfinal: Torres In Top Form As Chelsea Progress

Chelsea earned a place in the FA Cup Semi-Finals with a 5-2 win over Championship side Leicester City at Stamford Bridge this afternoon, with Fernando Torres handing a timely reminder to the Blues faithful that he still could be the main man at the club after a turning in an inspired performance.

After only eleven minutes Chelsea had the lead when Gary Cahill leaped highest in a crowded penalty area to nod home Juan Mata's corner from inside the six yard box. Cahill in celebration revealed a touching tribute to Fabrice Muamba, as he showed a t-shirt with the slogan "Pray 4 Muamba" printed on.

It was only five minutes later when Chelsea doubled their lead through Solomon Kalou. Torres raced down the right hand side from inside his own half right to the edge of the Leicester area before slipping the ball perfectly to the Ivorian striker. Kalou waited and waited for Kasper Schmeichel to commit himself, and when he finally did, it was an easy finish.

Chelsea remained in control throughout the first half, and well into the second where Torres finally got a goal in the 67th minute, after an impressive hard-working performance. Raul Meireles latched on to Daniel Sturridge's slide rule ball, played the ball to the penalty spot where Torres was lurking and finished into the bottom corner, and the tie effectively over.

At this point the visitors seemed to spring into life, but it was really just too little too late when Jermaine Beckford pulled a goal back. Neil Danns fired towards Petr Cech's goal from distance and rattled the post, with Beckford quicker than Cahill and Ryan Bertrand to react for an easy finish in the 77th minute.

Chelsea were quick to restore their three goal cushion, and it was the impressive Torres who grabbed his second of the game, nodding in Meireles' corner at the near post wit Schmeichel well beaten.

Perhaps the goal of the game came just three minutes later in the 88th minute, when Leicester City substitute Ben Marshall, a recent signing from Stoke City, cut inside from the left wing onto his right foot, to send the ball high into the top corner beyond Cech from well in excess of 30 yards.

The game was still well beyond Leicester at this point however, and Chelsea put the seal on a memorable day for Roberto Di Matteo's men when Meireles slotted in the fifth goal for the side in the final minute of the game, set-up by who else but Fernando Torres.

For more reaction to this game check out our Chelsea site, We Ain't Got No History.

Fernando Torres Scores A Real, Actual Goal

Tottenham Vs. Bolton FA Cup Match Abandoned After Fabrice Muamba Collapses

The FA Cup match between Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers has been abandoned after Bolton's Fabrice Muamba collapsed to the pitch just before halftime. Initially the match was just suspended as the medical staff tended to the player and then the teams waited for word on his condition, but referee Howard Webb eventually made the obvious decision decision to abandon the contest.

It was clear immediately the Muamba was not suffering from a regular injury. The medical staff was not treating him as they would a normal injury and if that didn't give it away, the players sure did. Players had their hands over their faces and looked to be in shock as Muamba was treated on the pitch. Their minds were clearly not on football and with both teams more preoccupied with getting notice on Muamba's condition, the only sensible decision was to abandon the match.

Once Muamba was stretchered off, he was immediately put in an ambulance and taken to the hospital. Speculation has ranged from him suffering a heart attack to a seizure, but there is no concrete news of his condition.

Fabrice Muamba Stretchered Off, Tottenham Vs. Bolton Delayed

A scary situation at White Hart Lane has put the match on hold for more important matters as a medical team attends to Bolton's Fabrice Muamba after the player fell to the pitch with an apparent health scare. Referee Howard Webb eventually told the teams to leave the field and the match was put on hold while the possibility of abandoning the match is being considered.

It did not look like there was any impact or collision that caused Muamba to fall to the pitch, but the medical team was quickly out to him and attended to him for nearly 10 minutes before stretchering him off. Announcers speculated that it could be a heart issue or a seizure, but it was nothing more the speculation. All that was clear was that very serious and not just a regular injury, but a real health situation.

Whether or not the match is continued is still unclear, but it is hardly the focus at this moment. Muamba's health is the only real concern and with that in doubt, it is tough to imagine either side wanting to continue the match. All we can do now is hope for the best and send our best wishes Muamba's way.

Everton Vs. Sunderland, 2012 FA Cup: Black Cats Force Replay

As is customary these days, Sunderland didn't have much possession and didn't have too many shots against Everton on Saturday. And, as usual, those stats don't tell anyone a thing about how the game went.

Though Everton had chances to win late, Sunderland were in control and had Everton where they wanted them for most of their FA Cup match at Goodison Park, though the Toffees did well to fight back after conceding. The Black Cats struck first, but Tim Cahill equalized for Everton to force a 1-1 draw. Simon Mignolet was forced into some late saves, but Sunderland held on to force a replay.

Sunderland right back Phillip Bardsley scored the opener in the 12th minute with an absolute screamer of a shot after a set piece. It looked like they were more likely to score a second than Everton were to equalize for a solid 10 minutes, but the Toffees hit back with a great goal, as Cahill headed hoe from close range in the 23rd minute, assisted by Nikica Jelavic.

Royston Drenthe had a brilliant free kick hit the crossbar late in the first half and Mignolet had to make a stunning double save on a John Heitinga header and a Jelavic rebound attempt in the 87th minute, but Everton weren't able to find the winner they needed to avoid a trip to the northeast.

For more on the two teams, head over to Everton blog Royal Blue Mersey and Sunderland blog Roker Report.

FA Cup 2012, Quarterfinal Preview And Fixtures: Underperforming Sides In Search Of Silverware

This season’s FA Cup has been full of surprises, and all the teams in the final eight will think they have a chance at silverware with only an underperforming Tottenham Hotspur representing the Premier League’s top four at this late stage in the competition.