If West Ham and Leeds United weren’t going to take today’s FA Cup quarter-final at the London Stadium seriously, yesterday’s results will certainly have refocused minds.

Arsenal’s defeat to Southampton has sent shockwaves not only through North London but the competition itself. Naturally, there will be the usual conspiracy theories suggesting Manchester City and Chelsea will be kept apart in the semi-finals. Personally, I’m not buying into that — and there’s every chance the winner of today’s tie could be drawn against Southampton.

If that happens, and West Ham get the job done, then suddenly a route to the final opens up in a very real way.

West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen is desperate to lead his team out at Wembley

Wembley Within Reach for West Ham

In truth, too much is often made of simply reaching Wembley for a semi-final. Hosting the last four at the national stadium does take something away from the final itself, and I’ve always felt semi-finals should be played at neutral venues.

That said, it clearly still means a lot to the players. Jarrod Bowen admitted yesterday he would love to lead his West Ham side out at Wembley —...