Which team have United faced most in the FA Cup?

This follows a game with Reading, prompting more deja vu, and we also met Aston Villa in this season's Carabao Cup, another opponent we seem to face pretty regularly.

But do the stats back this up?

Well, this will be the 14th meeting with the Hammers in the FA Cup, although that does include replays. We have been paired with the east Londoners in 2013, 2016 and 2021, and two of those ties went to replays.

When you add in home games against them in the 2016/17 and 2021/22 Carabao Cup, it is easy to see why they feel like regular cup opponents of late.

The same can be said for Reading, after we've drawn them in the FA Cup in 2007, 2013, 2017, 2019 and, of course, 2023.

Yet when you go back over all the FA Cup games, the biggest clubs sit top of the list, even if the Hammers will join Fulham on 14 matches in the competition against us.

Remember, though, this does include replays and also there is the fact that there was no draw for the finals, of course, which would knock off fixtures fagainst Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Sides also featuring prominently are Everton, who we faced in third round this year, and Derby County, who were knocked out by West Ham on Monday night, denying them another trip to Old Trafford.

Villa are the team we've drawn most in the third round (eight), Liverpool in the fourth round (five), Arsenal in the fifth round (four) and Chelsea in the quarter-finals (four).

MOST FREQUENT FA CUP OPPONENTS

18: Liverpool
17: Chelsea
16: Arsenal, Reading, Tottenham
15: Middlesbrough, Southampton
14: Fulham, West Ham (when we meet next month)
13: Aston Villa, Everton
12: Derby County

If you remove the finals, because there was no draw for those games, it would look like this:

16: Liverpool, Reading, Tottenham
15: Middlesbrough
14: Arsenal, Chelsea, Fulham, Southampton, West Ham

Replays would affect things too - Reading would drop by five, Liverpool four, Middlesbrough four, Tottenham four and so on.

With only one replay held against Arsenal, arguably the most famous one in our history in the competition, it would appear that the Gunners are the team we've drawn the most as Villa (once) and Everton (twice) have also been final opponents.

MOST-DRAWN FA CUP OPPONENTS

13: Arsenal
12: Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham
11: Derby County, Everton, Middlesbrough, Reading, West Ham

By our reckoning, this seems to be the list of the teams we have been paired with the most times in FA Cup draws, with this year's opponents Everton, Reading and West Ham certainly right up there.

Curiously, it's a totally different story in the League Cup with Manchester City our most frequent opponents (10 times), followed by Burnley (nine).

Stats courtesy of www.mufcinfo.com.