Two sides that have struggled to meet expectations this season face off at Wembley on Saturday evening aiming to keep their FA Cup hopes alive at the semi-final stage.

Everton and Manchester United are currently separated by 18 points in the English top flight, but a tense match is expected in London this weekend in what has all the hallmarks of a classic cup tie.

Everton

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All managers know exactly just how cynical the world of football can be when in the dugout, which Roberto Martinez is continuing to learn the hard way during his tenure at Goodison Park.

Having been lauded as a messiah in his first campaign on Merseyside, taking over from David Moyes and bringing a fresh feel to the club, the Spaniard has since produced nothing but mediocrity in the view of supporters.

That may seem harsh on the face of it, granted, but the pressure is well and truly piling on Martinez heading into Saturday's crunch clash with United - arguably his biggest match as manager since winning this competition with Wigan Athletic in 2013.

Some reports have even suggested that, on the back of Wednesday night's heavy defeat to Liverpool - described by Martinez himself as "a disaster" - it could be curtains for the Everton boss regardless of his domestic cup achievements this term.

Going all the way in the FA Cup would at the very least provide supporters with something to celebrate, though, and it is not exactly like the blue side of Merseyside has had much luck on the silverware front in recent times.

Not since 1995 have they lifted this famous trophy, when seeing off this weekend's opponents Man United in the final, and you would not back the Toffees to end that run this time around going by their recent form alone.

Following that loss at Anfield in midweek, it is now just three points taken from the last 18 for Everton - enough to leave them second from bottom in the current Premier League form table ahead of only relegated Aston Villa.

Bar a positive run around the turn of the year, when putting together three 3-0 wins on the bounce, results have remained constantly underwhelming on the whole to leave Martinez's men staring at a bottom-half finish in the league.

Form can often be disregarded when it comes to cup competitions, of course, particularly when competing at Wembley in a one-off spectacle in front of millions of viewers around the globe.

Martinez will also point to his side's decent run in the FA Cup this term, too, having seen his side score nine times in their four matches without shipping a single goal to date.

The first two of those outings came against lower-league opposition in the earlier rounds, before brushing aside Bournemouth and getting the better of Chelsea in a tight and cagey quarter-final clash that will be best remembered for Diego Costa's antics.

Now it really is do or die for Martinez and his group of underperforming players, knowing that anything less than victory at the weekend and this once exciting looking project continuing beyond the summer will be highly unlikely indeed.

Recent form (all competitions): LLDDDL

Manchester United

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Like him or loathe him, you have got to respect the way in which Louis van Gaal has constantly pulled big results out of the bag just when his days appear to be numbered at Old Trafford.

The latest example of that came a little over a week ago when the Red Devils kept their cup hopes alive by edging out West Ham United in a thrilling tie at Upton Park - the last ever to be staged at the famous East London venue.

It provided one of United's best team performances of the campaign, coming at just the right time for Van Gaal who is reported to be on his way out of the club in the summer regardless of events over the closing weeks of the campaign.

One defeat in eight in all competitions certainly makes things look rosy on the face of it, but dig a little deeper and there is still a cause for concern for those supporters who have grown tired of the Dutchman's bland style of play.

A 1-1 draw at home to Liverpool during that run brought United's European aspirations to a bitter end, while the recent 3-0 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur only served to highlight the gap between Van Gaal's men and the current pacesetters of the division.

Results have largely been efficient on the whole, however, ensuring that the 11-time winners of the FA Cup still remain in contention for a top-four finish as well as lifting a trophy at Wembley in May - not quite the disastrous season that it has been made out to be by some.

Keeping apace with Arsenal and Manchester City in the race for fourth largely explains why Van Gaal opted to field a strong side in the routine 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday night; a match that included a second successive start for skipper Wayne Rooney.

Rooney, who has now seemingly put his injury worries behind him heading into a big summer on a personal level, is still seeking a first FA Cup winner's medal following his side's barren run in the competition over the past decade.

It has now been 12 years since they last lifted the cup, in fact, while you have to go back to 2007 to find the last time the English heavyweights even contested in the final, where they lost 1-0 to Chelsea in Wembley's domestic bow.

The Red Devils have lost each of their last two semi-final matches at the famous ground, too, slipping up against Everton in 2009 and Manchester City in 2011 in their most recent visit, although not since 1970 have they lost three on the bounce at this stage.

Van Gaal himself will have happy enough memories of his only previous visit to the National Stadium, as his Barcelona side beat Arsenal 4-2 in a Champions League group-stage fixture there in October 1999.

Plenty of questions over the Dutchman's future remain unanswered on the eve of this huge showdown, but a strong end to the campaign - including a win on Saturday - could well see the experienced boss given a chance to see out the third and final year of his contract.

Recent form (all competitions): WWLWWW

Team News

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Chris Smalling has declared himself fit for this final-four showdown after picking up a knock against Palace, but Bastian Schweinsteiger and Luke Shaw are definitely out.

Neither was expected to be fit in time for this one, with a summer return the most likely, while Adnan Januzaj is also out of contention after failing to build up his fitness in recent weeks.

United could therefore stick with the same starting lineup that saw off Palace in a comfortable manner last time out, although Marcos Rojo, Marouane Fellaini and Memphis Depay will all be pushing for starts after missing out in that one.

In terms of the Toffees, Martinez has a growing list of injury concerns, but Gareth Barry and John Stones are both likely to play a part after being withdrawn against Liverpool through minor issues.

Injured full-back Seamus Coleman will not feature at Wembley, though, meaning Bryan Oviedo filling in at right-back and Leighton Baines patrolling the opposite flank.

Ramiro Funes Mori will also sit this one out after seeing a straight red card for his challenge on Divock Origi in the Merseyside derby defeat, which he has since apologised for.

Elsewhere, Everton fans will be desperate to see Phil Jagielka return from injury in the heart of defence, and there will also be a start for Romelu Lukaku - a player who has found the net in all five of his FA Cup games for the club.

Everton possible starting lineup:
Joel, Baines, Jagielka, Stones, Oviedo, McCarthy, Cleverley, Mirallas, Lennon, Barkley, Lukaku

Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Darmian, Lingard, Schneiderlin, Mata, Rooney, Martial, Rashford

Head To Head

Martinez has lost 10 of his 14 meetings with United as a manager, winning four of those games - three of which have come during his time in charge of Everton.

The Toffees have progressed from six of their last seven semi-finals in this competition, the exception being their last appearance at this stage in 2012, but overall their record is not great against this weekend's opponents.

United have won 84 and lost 69 of the previous meetings, although in recent times that is more mixed as Everton have won two and lost three of the last five encounters.

The last match between the pair ended 1-0 to the Red Devils earlier this month, with Anthony Martial's goal settling the game 10 minutes into the second half at Old Trafford.

We say: Everton 0-1 Manchester United

This is a well-balanced match in terms of recent history, although Everton's form over the past few months does not provide those travelling down from Merseyside with too much hope. United have also failed to truly match expectations this term, but they are better positioned to push on at this moment in time and will keep their cup hopes alive with a narrow win on Saturday evening.

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