Winston Reid was relieved West Ham United avoided becoming the latest Premier League side to be knocked out of the FA Cup as they beat League One Bristol City 1-0 on Sunday.
Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham and Southampton all had shock defeats on Saturday, but West Ham made it through to the fifth round thanks to Diafra Sakho’s goal nine minutes from time.
“The manager said to us before that there were a lot of upsets yesterday and we didn’t want to be one of them,” Reid told the BBC after the final whistle.
City pushed West Ham in the first half, but the London side improved after the break and Sakho nodded in Andy Carroll’s cross for the win at Ashton Gate.
Reid was happy the game did not go to a replay. The New Zealand centre-back said: “We wanted to come here and finish off the game.
“We had to wait a bit for it, but we got there in the end and that’s the most important thing.
“It’s always hard coming to places like this. But we put on a good performance and we got a clean sheet and fortunately Sakho got the goal.”
When West Ham coach Sam Allardyce was asked whether he was relieved to have made it through, he said: “Yes, because I knew it was going to be tough.
“I think that we found it difficult at times to get our normal passing routine going.
“It’s very rare that we don’t score and then one popped up.
“Bearing in mind what’s happened over the weekend, it is a pretty big result for us. We are in the hat and that’s what matters.”
At Aston Villa midfield star Fabian Delph has committed his future to the club after signing a new four-and-a-half-year deal.
The England international was out of contract at the end of the season and had been linked with a move to Liverpool.
But, ahead of their 2-1 FA Cup victory over Bournemouth, the club announced the deal.
Carles Gil helped fire Villa into the fifth round as they avoided an upset. The midfielder’s first goal for the club on his full debut put the hosts ahead. Andi Weimann’s second-half strike – his first goal since November – then proved crucial as Villa extended their lead.
Callum Wilson replied deep into stoppage time but the visitors ran out of time to mount a comeback.
“The club has given me a great platform to perform and a great opportunity to showcase what I can do,” Delph said.
“The fans have been great with me, the chairman has been absolutely fantastic with me and I have a great relationship with the manager and I see the boys here as my brothers, my family and I am delighted to stay here.”
Stoke City coach Mark Hughes said he is preparing for his side's FA Cup tie with League One side Rochdale on Monday in the same way he would a Premier League match and insisted the FA Cup is important to his side.
“Even against Wrexham in the last round we had something like 10 internationals on the field of play,” he said.
“It’s a trophy we have a good opportunity to win. But you need a bit of luck in terms of opposition and in games, because sometimes it can hit somebody on the backside and you lose.”
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