English FA CUP
2026-02-15 - Oxford United vs Sunderland
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English FA Cup Fourth Round
Sunday 15th February 2025 - Kick Off 2pm
This game is live on TV
Oxford United
There is still time for Oxford United to find a way out of a precarious position, but they are going to need some big results very soon to give the team some momentum. The fans will arrive at the Kassam Stadium on Sunday looking for a Cup upset, but Matt Bloomfield is just hoping for something positive to give his tenure at the helm a boost.
He only arrived here last month, but Oxford United have not had much of a new manager bounce and that leaves them in the bottom three of the Championship and 4 points from safety. The heavy home loss last weekend to struggling Norwich City will have felt like a bitter blow, while Oxford United needed Penalties to beat MK Dons in the FA Cup Third Round.
Oxford United had begun life under Matt Bloomfield with a 4 game unbeaten run, but only one of those matches had ended in a win inside normal time. Since then, Oxford United have lost 3 of the last 4 games played and the side have lost consecutive home games against Birmingham City and Norwich City.
Sunderland
Regis Le Bris will be looking for his team to bounce back from a difficult week in the Premier League having lost to both Arsenal and Liverpool. The effort in the defeat to both has to be commended, but Sunderland will want to avoid an upset in the FA Cup to just make sure the slump does not become a prolonged one.
The two time former FA Cup Winners have not had a lot of success in the competition in recent years and Sunderland would be making it past the Fourth Round for the first time in over a decade if they were to win this tie. They did overcome Everton away from home in the FA Cup Third Round, but Sunderland needed Penalties on that day.
Sunderland have lost 3 of the last 4 games in all competitions and that will have just dented some of the confidence in the squad. The away form continues to be a concerning one and Sunderland have not won any of their last 9 away games in all competitions in normal time, while they have been beaten in 3 of the last 4 on their travels.
The squad does not have any new injury issues, but the manager may still choose to make some rotations to freshen things up.
Head to Head
Both clubs were playing in the Championship last season and each beat the other at home by the same 2-0 scoreline.
Sunderland had been unbeaten in 10 visits to Oxford United prior to the defeat here last April and they had won 3 in a row.
Prediction
This has the potential of being one of those Cup exits that the television companies love to broadcast, but it would mean Oxford United finding a significantly better level than they have produced recently.
The side sitting in 23rd in the Championship have been struggling at both ends of the field and that has resulted in consecutive home defeats.
Matt Bloomfield may feel the FA Cup offers his Oxford United team an opportunity to build some momentum and confidence, but getting the better of this Sunderland looks a big ask.
Last season they did beat Sunderland at the Kassam Stadium, but the promotion to the Premier League resulted in a lot of financial investment and The Black Cats are very different now.
Despite a tough couple of weeks, Regis Le Bris has been happy with the level of performance in the main with only the defeat at West Ham United the outlier. Something similar here can see Sunderland reach the FA Cup Fifth Round for the first time in over a decade and it may pay to back the Premier League club to move through with a clean sheet.
In the last 4 games, Oxford United have scored just a single goal, while it has been much tougher for them in the final third in recent games at the Kassam Stadium. In fact Oxford United have not scored in any of their last 5 at home and this may be a fixture in which Sunderland can weather some rocky moments and just display a touch more class in the final third to earn the victory without the need for Extra Time or Penalties.
The Pick :
Oxford United 0-2 Sunderland
