Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna welcomed the distraction of the FA Cup as his side booked their place in the fourth round with a 3-1 win at AFC Wimbledon.
The Championship promotion-chasers were good value for their win at Plough Lane, as second-half goals from Axel Tuanzebe and Jack Taylor distanced 10-man Dons.
Having beaten Wolves and faced Fulham in the EFL Cup, McKenna wants another taste of the big time.
He said: “We’ve had a couple of Premier League teams this year and that gave us some good challenges. A big draw would be nice. We want to go far in the competition if we can.”
The Tractor Boys are firmly focused on reaching the promised land, sitting second in the Championship, but McKenna still sees value in a cup run.
“We’re coming out of a really busy period, but in the second half of the season the schedule isn’t as intense in the Championship in terms of midweek games, so we welcome the extra game,” he said.
Josh Davison put through his own net to give Ipswich the lead after eight minutes, but the hosts soon pulled level as Jake Reeves converted a penalty.
Tuanzebe restored the visitors’ lead after 40 minutes and Wimbledon’s prospects of mounting a second comeback were dented when Harry Pell, going up for an aerial challenge with George Edmundson, was shown a second yellow just before the hour mark.
His manager Johnnie Jackson railed against the decision, saying: “I feel like we’ve been robbed of an opportunity. Does Pell deserve to take no further part in the game because of that?
“He’s got eyes on the ball, he’s not looking at anything else but the ball, he doesn’t swing with his elbow at all. You can’t swing for a header without your arms coming up. I’m not saying he hasn’t been caught, but that’s football. It’s a poor decision.”
Taylor made it three in the final minute of normal time to send Ipswich into the fourth round for the second season running.
McKenna said: “It was a tough cup tie, but it was always going to be. It was everything you expect from an FA Cup tie – it wasn’t all our way.
“We certainly had chances to score more goals than we did, but we didn’t get the two-goal margin to make it 100 per cent comfortable until late in the game.”
Jackson added: “We competed with a top team in Ipswich, stayed in the game the whole 90 minutes, and I think we can feel a little bit hard done by.
“Even with 10 men, we’re pushing, forcing their keeper into saves. I don’t feel like that tells the story.”
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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