Semi-final day: Aston Villa v Liverpool

So here we are, match day and it's a big one because if we win, we're in a final and in a final against eleven men, anything can happen, especially against Arsenal. But the team we're playing are going to be as interested as us in getting to Wembley on May 30th.

And a final would be good for Aston Villa in so many ways and this almost feels like a final, which I suppose you can't blame some for treating it that way, but for me, it's just a big match and if we win, it leads to an even bigger one.

But there is no harm in getting a little excited in the day, even if it should be played in Manchester or Yorkshire. So, this is where we start to get carried away.

We have met Liverpool on three previous occasions in a semi-final and the one time we beat them, we went on to win it. The thing is, that was in 1897. And the other four times we've met them in the FA Cup, we've lost them too.

But, we've done better against Liverpool in recent years, mostly because Liverpool are not the side they once were, but let's be clear, they're going into this game as favourites, which sort of suits us and will set it up perfectly for us.

Updates and team news

So with all that written, we wait until 3pm. Some of us will have a beer or two, some will sit nervously while others will be busy with trying to make this day just a normal day, ahead of an important match.

Until we have team news though, we can speculate and top of the list is that it looks likely that Given will replace Guzan and I think it's fair to say that Benteke will be starting as will Hutton and Sinclair. You can't say that we wont be starting with a stronger side this week than last week.

But team news is coming and no doubt a lot of optimism. Me, I'm going to be doing a combination of all three above. So, with all that written, let's hope for a good day.