June date for Sheffield United's FA Cup quarter-final

The Football Association have announced the dates for the final three rounds of their cup competition, which were postponed along with all English football because of the coronavirus suspension.

Although the Cup has been downgraded in recent years, and despite the crowded fixture list as the Premier League tries to complete its 2019-20 season, the quarter-finals and semi-finals will both take place on weekends – June 27/28 and July 11/12 – and teams will have a clear week to prepare for the August 1 final after the conclusion of the league programme the previous weekend.

Venues for the matches are yet to be confirmed, with the Blades have been drawn to face Arsenal at home in a match that was originally due to be played on March 22.

The plan is for most Premier League matches to be played at their original venues, with the caveat that some may be moved to neutral venues if the police are concerned about supporters congregating outside the grounds. Since 2008 all semi-finals have been played at Wembley.

All three rounds were already due to be decided on the day, with quarter-final replays scrapped for this season.

The Blades have beaten Fylde, Millwall and Reading already in the competition. They defeated Arsenal in the league at Bramall Lane in October, and drew January's return game.

The Premier League has announced it plans to return on June 17, with Sheffield United's trip to Aston Villa and Manchester City's game against Arsenal the two matches scheduled. After that there will be nine further rounds of matches in 37 days.

Seventh in the table with a game in hand on Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, the Blades are hoping to qualify for Europe for the first time via the league, but the FA Cup offers a second route into the Europa League for the winners.

The other quarter-finals pair Leicester City and Chelsea, Newcastle United versus holders Manchester City, and Norwich City against Manchester United.

As with the Premier League, all dates are subject to Government sign-off, and continued health and safety monitoring.

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