Preview: Notts County v Swans
Swansea City hope to progress to the fifth round of the Emirates FA Cup when they face Notts County at Meadow Lane this afternoon (3pm).
Carlos Carvalhal’s men are aiming to maintain momentum from Monday evening’s 1-0 win over Liverpool at the Liberty, when Alfie Mawson’s 40th minute goal secured the famous victory.
The Swans face League Two outfit Notts County, who go into the match off the back of successive league losses against Exeter City and Crawley Town.
Kevin Nolan’s side currently sit in second position in League Two on 51 points, having won 17 and drawn six of their 28 league matches so far this season.
The Swans reached the fourth round of the competition following a 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the third-round replay at the Liberty last week, while Notts County have overcome Bristol Rovers, Oxford City and Brentford to reach this stage.
The Swans have a good record against Notts County, having won 30 and drawn 16 of the 70 encounters between the sides, however the two sides have not met since March 2005 when Notts County ran out 1-0 victors in a League Two clash at Meadow Lane.
Team news
The hosts will be without goalkeeper Ross Fitzsimons after he was shown a straight red card in stoppage time of the Magpies' 2-1 loss to Crawley on Tuesday evening.
On-loan Liverpool midfielder Matty Virtue will also miss out for the hosts after he was dismissed for two bookable offences in the same game.
Keeper Adam Collin faces a late fitness test after continuing his recovery from a knee injury.
Meanwhile, Carvalhal faces no injury concerns, with the likes of Tammy Abraham, Angel Rangel, Wayne Routledge and Renato Sanches all returning to full fitness.
What they said
Notts County boss Kevin Nolan: “We have a glamorous FA Cup tie against a Premier League side so I won’t have to do anything. It’s about keeping their feet on the ground more than anything else and keeping everything the same.”
Swans manager Carlos Carvalhal: “As we have seen in the cup competitions, such as the Carabao Cup, there can be surprises. We have to be ready and focused. If we do that, we will have a big advantage.”
Last six meetings
05. 03. 05 Notts County 1 Swans 0
18. 12. 04 Swans 4 Notts County 0
20. 02. 01 Swans 0 Notts County 1
12. 09. 00 Notts County 0 Swans 1
24. 02. 98 Notts County 2 Swans 1
18. 10. 97 Swans 1 Notts County 2
Pre-match stats
1 – Notts County have reached the fifth round of the FA Cup just once this century, when they beat Wigan Athletic 2-0 in a fourth-round replay in 2009/10.
3 – Jordan Ayew has netted three goals in his last five appearances in cup competitions for the Swans.
