EFL and FA Cup thread

I believe in you.

That's a lie

Rodri-less Man City, you'll be fine.

As much as I find the EFL a bit of a waste of time. I think it should be somewhat a priority for us to attempt to win.

Yeah you are right. I just feel we're verging on failure, if we don't start winning trophies. As much as challenging for the title and top four goes. You have to put your name on something. 

There is a lot of difference between the FA Cup and the League Cup.  I don't think winning the league cup has successfully silenced the doubters for a "big six" team in recent memory.  The FA Cup isn't what it used it be but it still matters and should be more of a priority.  Losing in that one hurts.

But it's not worth getting key players tired or injured for the smaller Cups, and these things definitely do happen.  We lost Saliba and Tomiyasu in that Europa League game (which is obviously a level above league cup but was still one many of us felt was lower priority at that stage) and it sunk our season. 

Look at Liverpool's injury crisis last year, and then they went and lost Gravenbirch in the League Cup final and that further contributed to them dropping out of the title race.

Arsene had the right approach.  It's a fun tournament and it's great to give those on the fringes minutes and youth prospects a chance to shine.  If they do well it's positive for the squad and if they lose, you use the reduction in games to go to Dubai or something.

Without wishing to be patronising, it's different for clubs that haven't won a trophy in decades and I kind of think that should be the point of it.  Similar to what the Europa Conference League did for West Ham.  It's just that for the past decade or so the big clubs keep spoiling it for everyone else by taking it too seriously and playing full strength sides at the sharp end to not even leave scraps for everyone else.

There’s a house I can see from our spare bedroom window that still has the black and white bunting up from when Ten Hag beat us to the League Cup two season ago

I certainly look back to our 'success' runs in the Carling Cup and go.. we really blew it didn't we. That Birmingham City game in particular.

I think for Spurs the league cup is important. If we can win a trophy to get that monkey off our back it would be massive. Same with all the cups really. But at some point you have to rotate and the league cup is the best place to do it.

Although playing Man City now may not be the worst thing. Chances are you are going to have to beat a City/Arsenal/Liverpool at some point. If we can do that at this stage it gives you real belief you can go on and win the thing.

I’m not sure what Newcastle’s excuse was in the loss against Man U. They just didn’t show up at all. Nerves maybe? Occasion getting the better of them?

I know ETH’s side has performances in them but so did Newcastle that season. Losing you just have to take but it was a shame to see them look so out of their depth when our last two cup finals 20+ years earlier had been exactly the same.

That was the following season 07/08.  Honestly think that tackle and how it was shrugged off rather than treated as a moment for reflection in terms of officiating and media narrative was one of the defining moments of that era.  The challenge was a direct consequence of the old school proper football men 'our league' narrative that insane levels of aggression was a legitimate tactic to stop those flashy foreigners at Arsenal. It was the third minute.  A classic 'I'm going to let him know I'm here' challenge and almost severed Eduardo's foot from his body.  Horrific.

Taylor got a three match ban, Eduardo's career was destroyed and wider football culture learned no lessons.  If anything the inability to cope with the trauma of that incident was taken as further proof that Arsenal were soft and encouraged more of it.

I'll be a stream hunting!

Edit: looks like it's on Sky but not the main game.

Looks like it!

That has to be a child interviewing Ruud?

Sterling and Jesus need to show some individual quality tonight.