While Gunners old boy David Bentley returns to north London with Blackburn, Reading's trip to Old Trafford means a reunion for their Irish midfielder Stephen Hunt with his boyhood friend John O'Shea, the United defender.

As well as putting him in contention for promotion to the full England squad, Bentley's form of late has been good enough to suggest that, for once, Arsene Wenger's judgement may have let him down when he decided to allow the winger to leave the club that had fostered his talent.

First-team opportunities at Arsenal were thin on the ground for Bentley when he requested a transfer in the summer of 2005.

But his development since then has done nothing to dispel the belief that, had he stayed in London, the 22-year-old Bentley might have been that rare thing -- a young English footballer good enough for Wenger's starting line-up.

Bentley's new team-mates certainly have no doubt about the former England under-18 captain's technical ability.

"We have many quality players at Blackburn but David is something special," said Shabani Nonda, the DR Congo striker whose time at Monaco and Roma leaves him well-placed to judge.

"I call him 'our Beckham'. No two players are the same but there is a bit of Beckham about him, the way he crosses the ball and the style he possesses."

Blackburn will relish their tilt at an Arsenal side that will have had barely 60 hours recovery time after being forced to extra-time in their fourth round replay at Bolton on Wednesday.

Wenger, who rested Thierry Henry on Wednesday, must also weigh his options for a Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven in Holland on Tuesday, but is confident that an extension of his side's 11-match unbeaten run will mitigate against tired legs.

"The fatigue factor is important but as long as you win you hope you can recover," said the Frenchman. "The team has been doing really well recently and the spirit has been exceptional."

Hunt and O'Shea, who grew up together in Waterford, have both hit the headlines this season; Hunt for the horrific collision that left Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech with a fractured skull and O'Shea for his spell in goal for United following an injury to Edwin van der Sar in a recent Premiership match.

"We met up recently with the Ireland squad but we didn't really discuss this FA Cup game - most of the banter was about him going in goal," revealed Hunt.

"It would be nice if it happened again so I could score against him, although I don't suppose that is very realistic. We know its going to be tough because United are playing with all guns blazing at the moment but hopefully we can give a good account of ourselves."

Plymouth's home draw against Championship leaders Derby means at least one side from outside the top flight is guaranteed to reach the last eight, although the odds on the winner being joined by Norwich, who face a daunting trip to Chelsea, would appear slim.

Ipswich and West Brom will travel to Watford and Middlesbrough respectively with higher hopes, but it is perhaps Sunday's meeting between Championship high-flyers Preston North End and a Manchester City side that has struggled for goals of late that has the greatest potential for an upset.

It is also an encounter imbued with the history of the world's oldest competition.

The two clubs have been crossing swords in the FA Cup since the 1890s, a time when North End were one of the great powers in the land. It is 59 years since they last met in the Cup however and Preston fans will gladly settle for a repeat of the outcome of that day: their Scots centre-forward Billy McIntosh having scored the only goal at Maine Road in February 1948.

Sunday also sees a London derby clash between Fulham and Tottenham. Woefully inconsistent in the league this season, Martin Jol's Spurs remain capable of matching the country's best on their day and the under-pressure manager could badly do with the distraction of a quarter-final tie to look forward to.

Fulham's home form however suggests it might take a replay for that objective to be achieved.