Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo insists his players will not hide as they face up to a tough winter.

Forest, already battling to avoid being sucked into a relegation battle, were plunged into further difficulties earlier this week as they were charged with breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations.

Nuno was pleased with the spirit shown as Forest saw off a Blackpool fightback to edge into the FA Cup fourth round with a 3-2 win after extra time of a tricky replay at Bloomfield Road on Wednesday.

Forest had gone into the game against the League One side without a host of players due to Africa Cup of Nations call-ups – of which the club have six – and injuries.

“The boys were ready,” said Nuno. “We cannot hide ourselves. Everybody can see we are short of options, especially offensive options.

“We are very short, we have a lot of players out, but the group is showing that with the help of everybody we’ll manage this tough period.”

Forest, who had to fight back from 2-0 down at the City Ground to force the replay, this time looked in control as they opened up a two-goal lead with strikes from debutant Andrew Omobamidele and Danilo.

This time it was the Seasiders who responded with goals from Albie Morgan and substitute Kyle Joseph and they could have won it when Karamoko Dembele spurned a good chance in stoppage time.

Chris Wood eventually settled the tie in the second period of extra time and Forest will now travel to Bristol City in the next round.

Nuno’s immediate thoughts now turn to Saturday’s league trip to Brentford but he would relish a good cup run.

The Portuguese said: “Every game is important. Now we have to prepare for Brentford. It’s going to be a tough one, especially after the effort of the players here and the lack of numbers that offensively we have.

“But we’re going to face every game and the cup – I’m not the only one to say it’s very special. We have to go for it.”

Nuno confirmed that midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White missed the game at Blackpool with an abdominal issue which could sideline him for a fortnight.

“The first diagnosis that we have is a couple of weeks,” he said. “We miss him because he was in a very good moment for us.”

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson had no regrets about his decision to protect the likes of Eberechi Eze for Saturday’s Premier League trip to Arsenal after substituting his star player in their FA Cup exit at Everton.

Trailing 1-0 to Andre Gomes’ brilliant first-half free-kick, Hodgson took off Eze – their most dangerous player – Tyrick Mitchell and Nathaniel Clyne after 64 minutes, with Jefferson Lerma and Odsonne Edouard following seven minutes later.

Eze’s withdrawal brought chants of, “You don’t know what you’re doing” from visiting fans but Hodgson said the way they finished they game, forcing Everton back-up goalkeeper Joao Virginia into a couple of good late saves, proved there was nothing wrong with his decision.

Asked whether he understood supporters’ frustrations he said: “Absolutely. We had to think very carefully about it.

“I appreciate for the fans it is a long way to come. I would’ve been disappointed to see Eze come off as he is one of our best players but I would have been equally disappointed if he had played another 35 minutes, got injured and put himself out for Arsenal.

“In the last 30 minutes of the game we had three or four goal chances. I thought this was a day when we deserved better than a defeat.

“The major point for us is that we get home at 2am and at 12.30 we play Arsenal on Saturday so that was our problem.

“I was able to at least spare three of the very important players for the weekend after 60 minutes and another couple after 70 minutes.

“We should be in a slightly better position to confront Arsenal because that will be a vitally-important game.”

On a fifth failure to get beyond the third round in eight years, Hodgson added: “It’s our own fault.

“If we had wanted to progress in the cup serenely we would have won the game at home. We didn’t, we drew 0-0 which forced us into a replay.”

Gomes’ goal was his first at Goodison Park in almost five years but it required an impressive performance from Virginia for Everton to progress to a home tie against fellow Premier League strugglers Luton.

Boss Sean Dyche revealed Abdoulaye Doucoure, just back after missing five matches with a hamstring problem, will be sidelined again after injuring the hamstring in his other leg against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Match-winner Gomes played in Doucoure’s position against Palace, but Dyche admits it is not his natural position.

“We know Gomes has had a really up and down time with injuries,” he said.

“I said to him when he came back (in pre-season) I can see him being part of what we do as he was unsure at that time about whether he was going to be here or not.

“We know he can play and it is finding the right spot for him. I don’t think he is true number 10 but we know he can deal with the ball in there and he found his way into the game.”

On Virginia, who also did well in the original tie, Dyche added: “I think he has moved on a long way this season.

“He made clear decisions, made a good save in the first half (from Mitchell) and then the one at the end (from Jeffrey Schlupp) he gets across quick and makes a good save.”

Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo admitted Blackpool forced his side to dig deep as they scraped into the FA Cup fourth round after extra-time on Wednesday.

The Premier League side needed a Chris Wood winner in the 110th minute to prevail 3-2 after the third-tier hosts had fought back from two goals down to force an extra half-hour at a freezing Bloomfield Road.

That came after the two sides had also played out a 2-2 draw in their first encounter at the City Ground.

Nuno said: “This is the FA Cup. That’s why this competition is so special – it allows every team to play and to fight the way Blackpool did.

“We cannot take credit away from them. We had our problems but a lot of credit goes to Blackpool.

“This is the magic of the FA Cup. That’s why I love it, because it is one chance for everybody.

“It was tough, but we did the job. We could have done better and we made mistakes that allowed Blackpool to get back in the game but in extra time we showed that we deserved the victory.”

Forest had seemed in control when Andrew Omobamidele marked his belated debut with the opener and Danilo doubled the lead but the hosts hit back with an Albie Morgan stunner and header from substitute Kyle Joseph.

Omobamidele celebrated the opener by lifting a shirt bearing a message for team-mate Cheikhou Kouyate.

The Senegal international has left his team’s camp at the Africa Cup of Nations following the death of his father.

Nuno said: “We had the news before the game and it’s a shock. Our thoughts are with him and the boys did well showing his shirt because he’s a very important guy in the dressing room and on the pitch.”

Blackpool manager Neil Critchley, whose side are eighth in League One, was proud of the effort of his team.

He said: “To go all that way and not to have anything to show for it is hard to take because I thought over the course of the 120 minutes, you couldn’t really tell the difference between the two teams.

“I thought we were brilliant. I thought we went and had a real go and made it a real exciting cup tie.

“To come from 2-0 down and show spirit and with the quality of the goals as well – I’m just bitterly disappointed that we didn’t take it to penalties and make it maybe even more exciting than it already was.”

Critchley felt Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel might have had a penalty in the second half and thought Wood’s winner was “borderline offside”.

He said: “We had VAR in the first game, but we hadn’t got VAR tonight.

“We might have had a penalty, we might have had an offside decision. The integrity of the competition has to be in question.”

A spectacular free-kick from Andre Gomes fired Everton into the fourth round of the FA Cup following a 1-0 replay win over Crystal Palace while Nottingham Forest needed extra time to see off League One Blackpool.

Gomes curled his shot over the wall and beyond Sam Johnstone three minutes before half-time for the only goal in more than three hours of football between the sides.

Palace were denied an equaliser at the death when Everton keeper Joao Virginia kept out an effort from substitute David Ozoh as the Toffees booked another all-Premier League tie at home to Luton.

Chris Wood scored an extra-time winner as Nottingham Forest overcame League One Blackpool 3-2.

The New Zealand striker tapped in a Ryan Yates cross to send the Premier League side through after a rip-roaring replay.

Andrew Omobamidele had marked his long-awaited Forest debut with the opening goal.

The Irish defender, who joined from Norwich for £11million almost five months ago, struck at the far post from a corner after 17 minutes.

Forest doubled their lead 50 seconds into the second half after Albie Morgan’s weak back-pass allowed Nicolas Dominguez to challenge Seasiders goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw and the ball broke for Danilo to stroke home.

Morgan made amends with a superb half-volley from the edge of the area to pull one back and Blackpool equalised with 11 minutes left when a looping cross from Andy Lyons was met with a far-post header by Kyle Joseph to send the tie into extra time.

Wood’s 107th-minute goal means Forest will travel to Bristol City in round four.

Norwich are heading to Liverpool after coming from behind to beat Bristol Rovers 3-1.

Luke McCormick volleyed League One Rovers ahead but Gabriel Sara hauled the Canaries level.

Adam Idah fired Norwich into the lead from the penalty spot and Kenny McLean wrapped up the victory three minutes from full time.

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson had no regrets about his decision to protect the likes of Eberechi Eze for Saturday’s Premier League trip to Arsenal after substituting his star player in their FA Cup exit at Everton.

Trailing 1-0 to Andre Gomes’ brilliant first-half free-kick, Hodgson took off Eze – their most dangerous player – Tyrick Mitchell and Nathaniel Clyne after 64 minutes, with Jefferson Lerma and Odsonne Edouard following seven minutes later.

Eze’s withdrawal brought chants of, “You don’t know what you’re doing” from visiting fans but Hodgson said the way they finished they game, forcing Everton back-up goalkeeper Joao Virginia into a couple of good late saves, proved there was nothing wrong with his decision.

Asked whether he understood supporters’ frustrations he said: “Absolutely. We had to think very carefully about it.

“I appreciate for the fans it is a long way to come. I would’ve been disappointed to see Eze come off as he is one of our best players but I would have been equally disappointed if he had played another 35 minutes, got injured and put himself out for Arsenal.

“In the last 30 minutes of the game we had three or four goal chances. I thought this was a day when we deserved better than a defeat.

“The major point for us is that we get home at 2am and at 12.30 we play Arsenal on Saturday so that was our problem.

“I was able to at least spare three of the very important players for the weekend after 60 minutes and another couple after 70 minutes.

“We should be in a slightly better position to confront Arsenal because that will be a vitally-important game.”

On a fifth failure to get beyond the third round in eight years, Hodgson added: “It’s our own fault.

“If we had wanted to progress in the cup serenely we would have won the game at home. We didn’t, we drew 0-0 which forced us into a replay.”

Gomes’ goal was his first at Goodison Park in almost five years but it required an impressive performance from Virginia for Everton to progress to a home tie against fellow Premier League strugglers Luton.

Boss Sean Dyche revealed Abdoulaye Doucoure, just back after missing five matches with a hamstring problem, will be sidelined again after injuring the hamstring in his other leg against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Match-winner Gomes played in Doucoure’s position against Palace, but Dyche admits it is not his natural position.

“We know Gomes has had a really up and down time with injuries,” he said.

“I said to him when he came back (in pre-season) I can see him being part of what we do as he was unsure at that time about whether he was going to be here or not.

“We know he can play and it is finding the right spot for him. I don’t think he is true number 10 but we know he can deal with the ball in there and he found his way into the game.”

On Virginia, who also did well in the original tie, Dyche added: “I think he has moved on a long way this season.

“He made clear decisions, made a good save in the first half (from Mitchell) and then the one at the end (from Jeffrey Schlupp) he gets across quick and makes a good save.”

Norwich manager David Wagner is relishing the prospect of pitting his wits against close friend Jurgen Klopp after his side secured an FA Cup fourth-round tie with Liverpool.

Wagner has promised his team will “go for it” when they head to Anfield following their 3-1 win over League One side Bristol Rovers in their third-round replay at the Memorial Stadium.

His side had to come from behind after Rovers took a first-half lead through Luke McCormick but the Canaries ended up comfortable winners thanks to goals from Gabriel Sara, Adam Idah and Kenny McLean.

“I haven’t checked my messages yet but I wouldn’t be surprised if Jurgen has already been in touch now we’re through,” said Wagner, who was a team-mate of Klopp’s at Mainz and best man at his 2005 wedding.

“I haven’t seen Jurgen in person since his birthday party last year so it will be great to have a bit of reunion with him.

“But it’s not about us and above all it’s all about making sure my team go to Anfield and do Norwich City proud.

“A tie at Anfield is a really big prize for my team and I know my players will relish the opportunity to take on the Premier League’s best players.

“But it’s not something that should hold any fear for my players and I will be telling them that we will go for it.

“It will be a great game but there are important Championship games between now and Liverpool but I promise we will be ready and will give a good account of ourselves.”

Wagner saluted his players after their second-half improvement.

“At half-time I asked them to be brave and be positive and so I could not be happier with their response,” he added.

“There are lots of positives we can take from this tie.

“The first 20 minutes we lacked energy but we needed to show more desire, aggression and hunger in the final third.

“When you’re 1-0 behind at a difficult place you can feel the heat and feel the pressure but we rose to the challenge.

“We showed lots of character and stayed strong and stayed together and we will have to show that again at Liverpool.”

Rovers manager Matt Taylor said: “This is a defeat that hurts because for me we’ve played a big part in our own downfall.

“Matt (Cox) was almost our penalty hero with the way he got a hand to the penalty (from Idah that made it 2-1) but that epitomises us in a sense.

“We’re an almost team and that’s got to change if we’re going to get anywhere.

“I’m proud of the players because we’ve gone toe-to-toe with a good Championship side.

“But overall it’s a big regret because we played well over the two legs. We shot ourselves in the foot in that little second-half spell which is frustrating.”

Chris Wood struck an extra-time winner as Nottingham Forest avoided an FA Cup shock at Blackpool amid a troubled week.

The Premier League club were charged with breaching the top flight’s financial regulations on Monday and third-tier Blackpool almost added to their woe as they fought back from 2-0 down at Bloomfield Road.

A penalty shoot-out was looming in an eventful replay when Wood turned in from close range to secure a 3-2 win and a fourth-round date with Bristol City.

Forest had seemed in little trouble when Andrew Omobamidele marked his belated debut with the opener and Danilo doubled the lead but the hosts hit back with an Albie Morgan stunner and header from substitute Kyle Joseph.

All that drama occurred in the final half hour after Forest seemed to have taken firm control.

There was little to excite in the opening quarter of an hour aside from a header from Murillo which was clawed away by Blackpool goalkeeper Dan Grimshaw.

Forest took control of the game in the 16th minute as Republic of Ireland defender Omobamidele, finally making his first appearance after his move from Norwich last summer, struck.

Omobamidele went forward for a corner and firmly volleyed home after Nicolas Dominguez’s cross was flicked on by Ryan Yates.

After celebrating he ran to the Forest bench and picked up a shirt which displayed a message to team-mate Cheikhou Kouyate, who is currently away at the Africa Cup of Nations and whose father recently died.

Blackpool were limited to half-chances as Forest retained the upper hand without any great urgency to kill off the game.

It seemed Blackpool’s best opportunity had passed when they surrendered a two-goal lead at the City Ground in the sides’ first meeting as Forest doubled their advantage soon after the break.

The hosts got into a mess trying to play out from the back and Morgan’s underhit backpass invited in Dominguez.

The Argentinian collided with the outrushing Grimshaw as he raced into the box but the loose ball rolled to Danilo, who fired in despite the efforts of Marvin Ekpiteta on the line.

To compound matters for Blackpool, Grimshaw was forced off after his knock but, from seemingly nowhere, the hosts roused themselves.

The game came alive on the hour as Forest failed to clear a home attack and Morgan, atoning for his earlier error, pulled one back with a superb strike from distance.

Forest almost responded immediately as Neco Williams forced a save from substitute keeper Richard O’Donnell but Blackpool began to sense a chance.

Joseph levelled matters just seven minutes after coming off the bench when he nodded in a high cross from Andy Lyons at the back post.

With the home crowd at their most raucous, Blackpool appealed for a penalty when Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel went down under a challenge from Murillo but nothing was given.

Karamoko Dembele almost snatched victory for Blackpool in stoppage time when he burst clear and rounded Odysseas Vlachodimos but Orel Mangala blocked on the line.

Shayne Lavery had an effort deflected over for Blackpool in the first period of extra-time, which ended with an apparent medical emergency among the Forest supporters but, after a brief flurry of activity, the game was not delayed.

Wood notched what proved to be the winner when he diverted in a Yates cross in the 110th minute.

Everton midfielder Andre Gomes’ first Goodison Park goal in almost five years settled a dreary FA Cup third-round replay against Crystal Palace.

With the temperature sub-zero the match did little to animate the 37,796 hardy souls in attendance but Gomes’ strike – the Toffees’ first from a direct free-kick in 197 games in a run dating back to August 2019 – was the one real highlight.

Gomes’ long stretch without a goal on home soil went back even further than Lucas Digne’s set-piece against Lincoln in the Carabao Cup in August 2019 but it was worth the wait.

Initially fouled by Jeffrey Schlupp 25 yards out the Portuguese took responsibility and curled a sumptuous effort over the wall and in off the post.

After three matches without a goal it was very much worthy of securing Everton a first third-round victory over top-flight opposition since they beat Sheffield Wednesday in 1988.

Palace’s winter break meant they had a free fortnight from the original tie – itself a drab goalless draw – to prepare. Everton, whose own break was eaten into by this replay, had three days.

Manager Sean Dyche made four changes from Sunday’s goalless draw with Aston Villa but two were enforced – Seamus Coleman and Abdoulaye Doucoure were both carrying knocks – while he rested goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

His deputy Joao Virginia had arguably his best game in his five-year spell at the club with a string of good saves to keep a clean sheet.

Gomes was deployed in Doucoure’s position just behind the striker, bringing a more measured, less energetic approach which meant Dominic Calvert-Lewin was often left isolated.

The England striker, now more than 17 hours without a goal, had a chance early on but his near-post shot was turned behind by Sam Johnstone before watching a promising Jack Harrison cross float over his head.

Quality of the final ball was a frequent cause for consternation as it was almost always over-hit and that left Calvert-Lewin frequently chasing lost causes down the channels.

Palace, by contrast, had much better control in the final third and in Eberechi Eze a player whose direct running opened up opportunities, highlighted by him side-stepping Vitalii Mykolenko only to fail to properly test Virginia, while Schlupp flicked over a pass from Jefferson Lerma.

But Schlupp was to have a more pivotal role at the other end with his unnecessary bringing down of Gomes as he set off on a lone run towards the penalty area allowing the Portuguese to exact immediate revenge.

Virginia made a good save from Tyrick Mitchell to ensure their half-time lead and will have been delighted to see Eze was surprisingly taken off in the 65th minute, prompting chants to boss Roy Hodgson of “You don’t know what you’re doing” from the away fans.

However, they were almost proved wrong when Odsonne Edouard’s shot on the turn was well saved by Virginia.

Calvert-Lewin’s almost three-month wait for a goal continued when he flashed an angled shot across goal while Gomes’ replacement Lewis Dobbin had a header deflected wide.

But the final say went to Virginia who made two crucial saves in added time to secure a home tie against fellow Premier League strugglers Luton.

Norwich manager David Wagner can look forward to a reunion with close friend Jurgen Klopp following a 3-1 win over Bristol Rovers at the Memorial Stadium that secured a fourth-round tie at Liverpool.

Matt Taylor’s League One side threatened an upset when Luke McCormick fired them ahead after 20 minutes but Norwich rallied in the second half with goals from Gabriel Sara, Adam Idah and Kenny McLean seeing them into round four.

Rovers began the third-round replay brightly and former Norwich striker Chris Martin saw an early effort drift just wide before Luke Thomas’ header was comfortably saved by George Long.

Norwich, without the injured Josh Sargent, struggled to get going as an attacking force and that allowed the Gas to continue to press with only a superb Long save denying Antony Evans.

It proved to be only temporary respite for Norwich as from the subsequent corner McCormick put the Gas in command with a carefully-placed low drive from just inside the penalty area.

Things went from bad to worse for Wagner’s lacklustre side when defender Danny Batth limped off injured.

Norwich were sparked into life by the energetic Sara, who finally gave the travelling supporters something to shout about with a long-range effort that Matt Cox did well to push over.

But back came Rovers and Thomas should have doubled the lead just before half-time as the Norwich defence fell apart but he wasted an inviting opening and side-footed wide of Long’s goal from just outside the area.

Rovers continued to enjoy the upper hand after the break and only a fine, low save by Long kept out Thomas’ powerfully-struck shot and only desperate defending kept the hosts at bay as they pressed for a potentially decisive second goal.

Norwich got their attacking act together and were level on 53 minutes thanks to the impressive Sara, who bundled the ball home from close range after Sam McCallum’s effort struck the post with the Rovers defence at sixes and sevens.

Rovers were soon back on the front but were punished for their ambition when they were caught out on a swift counter-attack by the marauding Canaries.

The hosts were left outnumbered as Norwich poured forward and were punished when Connor Taylor brought down McLean in the box following a collision.

Referee Andy Davies pointed to the spot and while Brentford loanee Cox got a hand to Idah’s penalty it was not enough to stop the ball from spinning over the line to give Norwich a 59th-minute lead.

Rovers kept going but Martin was brilliantly denied an equaliser by Long as the League One side’s dreams of a first visit to Anfield since 1992 faded.

McLean sealed victory in the 87th minute with a long-range effort to ease Norwich nerves.

Newport manager Graham Coughlan has described hosting Manchester United in the FA Cup as the biggest game in the club’s history.

County booked a money-spinning fourth round date with the 12-time winners at Rodney Parade on January 28 by winning 3-1 at non-league Eastleigh on Tuesday.

The Sky Bet League Two outfit have become used to entertaining Premier League big guns in recent years, welcoming Manchester City and Tottenham among others, while the old Newport County played in the European Cup Winners’ Cup in the 1980s before going out of business.

But Dubliner Coughlan, a massive United fan who joked his family would be “doing Irish jigs around the house” after Newport beat Eastleigh, insisted the visit of Erik ten Hag’s side will top those occasions.

“It’ll be a hell of an occasion,” Coughlan told BBC Sport Wales ahead of the first-ever meeting between the two clubs.

“It’s a fourth round tie against Manchester United, for me the biggest club in this country, in Europe and in the world.

“I know some people would lean towards the fifth round game against Manchester City (in February 2019), but I’d say Manchester United all day long.”

Coughlan recalled before the Eastleigh replay how United had left him in tears as a four-year-old when Arsenal beat them 3-2 in the famous “Five-minute final” at Wembley in 1979.

Gordon McQueen and Sammy McIlroy had dragged United back into the game in the final few minutes before Alan Sunderland slid home at the death to win the FA Cup for Arsenal.

“We’re a big Manchester United family, we’ve been to FA Cup finals with them,” Coughlan said.

“I can’t get my head around it to be honest, they are unbelievable names.

“Just to have Manchester United coming to Rodney Parade is a hell of an achievement.

“I don’t know when it will sink in, I’m sure my family are doing Irish jigs around the house at the moment.”

Television coverage, fourth round prize money and a capacity crowd around the 10,000 mark means Newport stand to make around £400,000 from the United tie.

It is a welcome boost for the supporter-owned club who have encountered financial difficulties and are on the brink of being taken over by Huw Jenkins, the former Swansea chairman who took them into the Premier League.

Newport are due to increase capacity at Rodney Parade by starting work on a temporary stand on Wednesday.

The stand will be in place for Saturday’s sold out League Two clash with Welsh rivals Wrexham.

“Another 1,000 passionate members of the Amber Army will get the chance to back the Exiles against Wrexham and Manchester United with the erection of a temporary stand behind the North Terrace,” read a club statement.

“The club is also adding an additional 400 seats to the away stand to meet the FA’s allocation guidelines for the Manchester United tie.”

Graham Coughlan was delighted after his Newport side secured a money-spinning FA Cup fourth-round tie with boyhood club Manchester United thanks to a 3-1 replay win at Eastleigh.

After drawing 1-1 at Rodney Parade last time around, both clubs knew the prize on offer at the Silverlake Stadium.

Top scorer Paul McCallum pulled the fifth-tier Spitfires level after Aaron Wildig’s early opener.

But James Clarke and Will Evans ended the hosts’ fairytale run as dreams of a fourth-round debut against Erik ten Hag’s Red Devils were crushed.

Coughlan’s side will earn £400,000 due to the tie being picked for television coverage.

And the Exiles manager said: “It’s a dream come true.

“Personally, for me and my family, it is a hell of an honour. We’re a big Man United family, we’ve followed them through thick and thin.

“We’ve been to FA Cup finals with them, but that’s a story for another day.

“It means a lot to the football club but it means a lot to this group of players. This group of players have absolutely run through brick walls and they’ve put their bodies on the line since they’ve come in. I’m really proud of them.

“Let’s take nothing away from Eastleigh. They have taken the scalp of a League One team here already in Reading. I’m pretty sure they would have fancied doing a League Two side tonight so fair play to them.

“I hope to see them push on from tonight and I hope that they can get into the play-offs.

“This is a really good club with some great people at it. I don’t want to be unfair to Eastleigh but I think there were a few more moments of quality from ourselves.”

After seeing his side’s fine run ended, Eastleigh boss Richard Hill labelled it a “punch in the face”.

He said: “This will be a memory which lives for a while.

“Over the time I’ve been at the club, the three stints, looking back I always said the one game I’d want back is the Grimsby game back and in time this will be a game I’d like back again.

“The cup run’s been great. It’s brought a lot of exposure to the football club, it’s brought the fans out. The fans were brilliant, they deserve a lot of credit because they stuck with us until the end.

“I know I divide opinion with a lot of them, but I’ve got to thank them. They were brilliant.

“To look back on the cup run, beating Reading was great. But the prize for this was massive and that’s what hurts the most; what the prize could have been. Not just for me, or the players, but for the media and being around those players who would have been coming here.

“It would have been a great occasion for everything around the football club.

“Newport were bright, sharper and a little bit more streetwise on the night. They deserved the victory, you’ve got to give credit to them.”

Birmingham manager Tony Mowbray said his substitutions changed the game after his side’s late FA Cup replay 2-1 win over Hull.

Mowbray made five changes just after the hour-mark and the substitutes made an immediate impact.

Jay Stansfield equalised in the 66th minute after Jason Lokilo had opened the scoring with his first Hull goal after 12 minutes.

Another of Mowbray’s substitutes, Koji Miyoshi, scored the winner in stoppage time to set up a fourth-round tie at Leicester.

“The substitutions undoubtedly changed the game with the quality they brought,” said Mowbray.

“My intention was always to provide energy so I was always going to make substitutions. The supporters will get used to that.

“Modern day football is why you have to have a squad, you don’t weaken your team by making substitutions, you freshen it up.

“You make sure the lads who aren’t starting know they have an important part to play in the match.

“You have to love the players and trust them, they have to know the gaffer’s on their side. You can’t just have 11, everyone has to be part of the team.”

“The lads who came on brought how we want to play and what we want to do, they got their rewards.”

Mowbray praised his side’s determination to win the game in stoppage time.

“There were lots of positives from the game and we got the job done,” he said.

“That’s two games on the bounce where we’ve got something late on.

“I saw a message at the training ground, ‘Keep Right On’ and that’s what we’ll do.

“We’ll go right to the end and see if we can get the benefits.”

Mowbray says Fulham can recall Stansfield from his loan at St Andrew’s, but feels the player wants to stay. Stansfield scored one and assisted the winner.

“There is a small, tight window for Fulham to recall him,” said Mowbray. “It hasn’t closed, but I get on well with Marco Silva and he’d tell me if there were any issues.

“I think the kid loves it here when I look him in the eye, there are other interested parties but I think he wants to stay, score goals and progress his career. He’s in a good place here.”

Hull manager Liam Rosenior says it is time his side stopped receiving praise for their performance without getting the result.

“I was proud of the young players and their performance. But we ran out of legs.

“I have to be so careful at the moment as we have injuries coming out of our ears and two players on AFCON duty,” said Rosenior.

“We also have an important game against Sunderland coming up on Friday.

“I have to manage the squad in the right way. We couldn’t fill the bench here. But, yet again, we’ve somehow managed to throw away a comfortable position and lose the game.

“It’s hard, I’m frustrated. I’m sick and tired of coming in after the game and saying ‘Well done, the performance was great, but we didn’t get the rewards’.

“This has to be the last time. It’s a watershed moment in our season, this result has summed up a lot of our games.

“But I don’t throw players under the bus,  but we have to knuckle down. We’ll come through this.”

David Moyes dismissed the idea of the FA Cup being the best cup competition in the world as “quite ridiculous” following West Ham’s exit at Bristol City.

The Hammers lost their third-round replay 1-0 after Said Benrahma was sent off for reacting foolishly to Joe Williams’ 51st-minute challenge.

VAR was not in operation at Ashton Gate even though it had been used in the original tie at the London Stadium nine days earlier, which finished 1-1.

Although Moyes felt Darren England made the right decision to send off Benrahma, the Scot was unhappy over Williams’ tackle on the Algerian as well as one or two other incidents in the game.

Hammers boss Moyes said: “It’s incredible they call it the best cup competition in the world. Yet one week you have VAR, one week you don’t.

“I find it quite ridiculous they try to claim that, but it’s not level for every club.

“If we’re not having VAR we shouldn’t have it in the tournament at all. If we’re going to have it, then have it everywhere.”

West Ham were trailing to Tommy Conway’s third-minute goal when Benrahma was banished at the start of the second half.

“It made it much more difficult, that’s for sure,” Moyes said about trying to engineer a recovery.

“I’ve had a look at it and I don’t think we can have any complaints. I don’t think his reaction was correct. It was a sending-off.

“I wasn’t sure about the tackle on him. That might have been questionable. I thought in game-time it was a pretty hefty challenge.

“I’m not sure the referee moved in quick enough to deal with the first challenge, which allowed something else to happen. There was one on Danny Ings as well that was not the best either.”

On the defeat, Moyes added: “We should have won the game at London Stadium and done the job better.

“That’s what happens in the cup competitions – if you’re not quite on it, or maybe not at your best, you can find yourself knocked out.”

Bristol City, 14th in the Sky Bet Championship, seized their opportunity against opponents who were without Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta, Michail Antonio and Mohammed Kudus for various reasons.

Robins boss Liam Manning said: “Across the two legs the performance level was really high.

“We got off to a great start which always helps, but there’s a real danger when you’re one ahead to try and protect that lead.

“But we showed a real bravery to try and play and press. We tried to stay on the front foot and I thought we were excellent.

“I was really proud of the lads because we maintained that level of focus you need against opposition like that.”

Bristol City will be at home to either Blackpool or Nottingham Forest in round four.

Boss Gary O’Neil insisted Wolves must maintain their focus after booking an FA Cup Black Country derby against West Brom.

Matheus Cunha’s penalty saw off Brentford 3-2 after extra time on Tuesday and sent Wolves into the fourth round.

Nelson Semedo and Nathan Fraser twice hit back for the hosts after goals from Nathan Collins and Neal Maupay in an entertaining replay.

Wolves now go to The Hawthorns on January 28 for the first Black Country derby in three years – and first with fans in attendance since 2012.

“As soon as we walked off I was thinking about Brighton (in the Premier League). I understand fans will be excited, it will be a big atmosphere, it hasn’t been played with fans for a while,” O’Neil said.

“I can’t wait to lead the team down there and see if we can progress again. There’s a Premier League game coming up and I have a very small tired group to do some work with before we go to Brighton.

“I have mixed feelings about the performance but I’m delighted with the win. The lads have worked unbelievably hard over the two ties. We’ve talked about taking the FA Cup seriously, we went down to 10 men at Brentford and tonight got a bit awkward for us.

“The players deserve credit for how they have approached the whole tie. We gave Brentford a bit of a lift by giving them two crazy goals.”

Collins, who joined Brentford from Wolves for £23million in the summer, opened the scoring after 13 minutes when he prodded in after Kristoffer Ajer’s shot was saved.

Semedo and Pablo Sarabia went close before Semedo levelled after 36 minutes when he tapped in after Thomas Strakosha saved his initial header.

Back came Brentford, though, and Maupay restored their lead six minutes into the second half after a VAR check for offside.

Yet Wolves equalised again with 17 minutes left, Fraser drilling into the corner three minutes after coming on.

It set up extra time and Shandon Baptiste had a shot turned on to the post by Jose Sa before Cunha won it in stoppage time of the first period when Pedro Neto was tripped in the box.

Brentford will now have Ivan Toney available when his eight-month suspension for betting breaches ends on Wednesday.

Boss Thomas Frank said: “It’s massive, no doubt. It’s like signing a Premier League striker who can score 20 goals because he’s proved it.

“Every team would be happy to sign a quality player like him. Ivan is a top player but he’s also very good at making the whole team better.

“Tonight we did a lot of things right. The first half was a bit direct from our side. I was very pleased with the second half and in extra time. In general we put a lot of effort into the game and we could have won.

“The game was decided by a penalty which, in my opinion, is not there. Ben (Mee) clearly hit the ball into Neto’s feet. It’s difficult to make a call but unfortunately I can’t alter that.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards believes his side will benefit from facing Premier League opponents in the next round of the FA Cup after making life difficult for themselves before overcoming League One Bolton 2-1 in Tuesday night’s third round replay.

Having been held to a goalless draw at Kenilworth Road nine days ago, Luton fell behind to Dion Charles’ 11th minute strike at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.

But Tahith Chong swiftly equalised before Chiedozie Ogbene’s second-half goal set up a tie against the winners of Wednesday’s replay between Everton and Crystal Palace.

Luton avoided the upset but Edwards admitted his side had let their standards drop when facing lower league opposition.

“Tonight was all about winning,” Edwards said. “We weren’t at our best. We were a little bit sloppy in too many moments and probably allowed them to build and grow in the game a little bit.

“Credit to them, there was a little bit of sloppiness but overall I’m very, very pleased that we’re through.”

“I think in a way it’s better for us to play a Premier League team in the next round, we know we’re going to have to be full tilt. We dropped in the last two games and we can’t do that, we’ll get punished.

“Bolton are a big, big football club. But when we’re favourites I think we’ve taken our foot off the gas in certain moments and we can’t do that. We’re not good enough to do that.”

Bolton, two points off the top of League One with three games in hand, played with confidence and had chances to retake the lead before Ogbene struck, while also having a second-half strike from Charles ruled out for offside.

“It was a difficult night,” Edwards added. “It’s cup football and it was never going to be easy. They’re playing very well, they’re used to winning.

“It’s a cold night, snowing, the recipe is there for an upset, or for us to go out. I’m really pleased we found a way to equalise quickly.”

Before kick-off there was a minute’s silence in memory of Iain Purslow, the 71-year-old Bolton supporter who died after being taken ill during Saturday’s League One match against Cheltenham, which was abandoned midway through the first half.

“I’m proud of the club and I’m proud of my team,” Bolton manager Ian Evatt said. “We wanted to pay him respect and to pay the family respect.

“It’s not about how we feel. It’s all about the family and their feelings. Hopefully now they get the time to mourn. We’ve paid our respects and I think they just need peace and quiet to come to terms with a really sad loss.

“I thought we started the game very fast and very well and got ourselves in front. Against Premier League opposition if you make mistakes you get punished and we made a couple tonight and they were punished. We would have liked to be in the lead a little bit longer and to stabilise it.

“In the second half I thought the team were outstanding for large spells and dominated against a very good team. I’ve watched a lot of Luton, they cause teams problems and tonight we caused them problems.

“It’s about trying to replicate that for the rest of the season and if we do that we’ll achieve our ambitions.”