Fulham vs Crystal Palace LIVE: Score from FA Cup quarter-final as Mateta returns from horror harm

2 mins: CHANCE! Fulham immediately on the front foot and fashion a glorious opening to take the lead!

Muniz skips past his man and drives into the box before firing a side-footed finish towards the far corner, but he just doesn’t get the bend on it – with it passing the wrong side of the post.

1 min: KICK-OFF! We’re underway at the Cottage.

We’re fast approaching kick-off at Craven Cottage as Fulham and Crystal Palace vie for a place in the FA Cup semi-finals.

Both sides are just one win away from a trip to Wembley.

We’ve got all the action, up next.

At Brighton this week, it had been suggested the club supply fans with special flags to give Saturday a proper sense of occasion, but this was rejected by manager Fabian Hurzeler and the wider staff. They want the players to treat this FA Cup quarter-final at home to Nottingham Forest as if it’s just another home game. That tends to be an attitude more conducive to actually winning, especially when you can sense the excitement building around the training ground.

Brighton are far from the only club wrestling with such competing emotions this weekend, because the majority of those left in the FA Cup are keenly aware this isn’t just another game. It’s a historic, and maybe unique, opportunity.

There will be no debates about the competition’s meaning. Most of the clubs who most frequently win it – including its five most successful clubs over the last 34 years and nine of its past 10 winners – are out. It really couldn’t mean more to those left.

On listening to Jan Paul van Hecke talk, you can start to understand why Fabian Hurzeler has empowered the centre-half to speak more, especially in a week like this.

Brighton and Hove Albion have been so focused on setting the right mindset that they have been sending their squad clips of late goals. The idea is to foster belief, especially as the club aims to take that crucial next step and win their first-ever major trophy through the FA Cup. “I feel like we really can do something in this cup,” Van Hecke says.

The Dutch centre-half’s approach helps. “I like to motivate other players,” Van Hecke explains, but staff say that is typical of this leader’s humility. The 24-year-old has naturally emerged as a senior voice.

Read the full interview below:

The FA Cup semi-final draw will take place on Sunday 30 March after the conclusion of Preston North End v Aston Villa, which kicks off at 1:30pm, so we can expect the draw to take place at approximately 3:45pm or later.

How to watch the FA Cup draw

The draw will take place live as part of BBC One’s broadcast of Preston North End v Aston Villa. It will also stream live on BBC iPlayer.

Mark Chapman will host the draw, while Joe Hart will conduct it.

Before his injury, he had scored eight goals in nine games and he will be chomping at the bit to get back in action, having missed the 1-0 win over Ipswich last time out.

He has 20 for the season, for club and country, so far and he will provide the biggest threat to the Fulham defence.

Fulham reached their only final in 1975, where they were beaten 2-0 by West Ham, while Palace have been beaten twice in the final by Manchester United.

The first time was in 1990, when they drew 3-3 with the Red Devils at Wembley, before Lee Martin scored the only goal of the game in the replay – a result which many say kept Sir Alex Ferguson in his job.

The same two sides met 26 years later and on that occasion United ran out 2-1 winners after extra time to lift the trophy for the 12th time.

Fulham XI: Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Lukic; Pereira, Iwobi, Willian; Muniz.

Crystal Palace XI: Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Lerma, Wharton, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Eze.