Yeates and Bradford are just three wins away from the FA Cup final at Wembley
Mark Yeates spent five seasons at Tottenham without making too much of an impression. The 30-year-old Dubliner made a triumphant return to London, last weekend, as he found the net in Bradford City’s 4-2 cup win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Yeates was speaking to his local paper, The Echo, this week about his team’s remarkable win and the role he played off the bench. He said, ‘I think when I look back on all the goals that I’ve scored, that one is certainly up there as one of the most special and important for me
‘We’ve got great spirit in this team. To go to Chelsea and beat them after being 2-0 down, not many teams, if any, have managed that. And the way Jose Mourinho sets up his teams to be so hard to beat, it was just a great achievement. We kept going right to the end and when we got opportunities we didn’t shy away from them. I think that was the most pleasing part of it all.’
The Bantams will now face Sunderland or Fulham in the fifth round, following their upcoming replay. ‘It’s not the Man United, Liverpool or Arsenal draw that we were hoping for,’ the Tallaght native admitted. ‘But Sunderland are a Premier League team and Fulham are in the Championship, and I don’t think either of them will fancy coming down here, especially with the state of our pitch which is not in very good condition at the moment.
‘We’ll have a full house for that game and, after the result we pulled off against Chelsea at the weekend, we’re confident that we can hold our own and get a result. No one’s going to take us lightly. But it’s back to the league now. It’s a bit of a come-down after the game last weekend, but that’s something we always knew.’
Yeates’ immediate priority, as Bradford chase League One play-off spots, is a win against Colchester this weekend. The striker concedes he is not 100% after a recent return from an injury picked up in the St Stephen’s Day win over Fleetwood.
‘I’d be hopeful that I can get back in the starting team,’ he added. ‘Obviously it’s always down to the gaffer, but I’ve enjoyed the season so far, playing well and scoring a few goals for the team.’
Hat-tip: The Echo
