It was only when my son informed me earlier that there was a crowd of Manchester City fans at Evesham station, I remembered it was FA Cup final day. There was a time when FA Cup final day was the biggest game of the season. Maybe it’s still the biggest game of the day because there’s only one other game in England today – the League Two play off clash between AFC Wimbledon and Notts County – but in all honesty: does anyone really care? Given the choice, I’d be watching the real Dons.
It is not just the fact that Pep Guardiola’s expensively assembled squad with their dreary robotic football have once again reached Wembley because they usually do. It’s just that the FA Cup in general and the final in particular represent the equivalent of a dead man walking.
We know all the reasons why the FA Cup isn’t important anymore. Mainly, it’s because of money and the money in particular of the Premier League. And for The Big Clubs what money there is in the FA Cup represents little more than a few days salary for their multimillionaire superstars. Far more important to finish in a Champions League place these days. Not winning is more important than winning something because – yes, you guessed it – all that money.
There are, of course, other reasons for the decline of this legendary tournament. The end of replays, holding semi finals at Wembley, teams putting out weakened sides, rearranging games to suit TV companies (which is all football, to be fair) and having the kick off today at 4.30 pm. What is that all about? The FA Cup Final kicks off at 3.00 pm.
I haven’t watched the Cup Final in years. The last but one time was in 2019 when my son and I watched Manchester City destroy Watford 6-0 whilst sitting in a pub in Liskeard. It was, and I am not exaggerating here, a repulsive spectacle, an act of financial bullying and abuse, masquerading as football. I didn’t vow to never watch another FA Cup final because I have a hazy recollection of Liverpool beating Chelsea on penalties three years ago, but even then I had to look it up.
This from a man who used to get up early as a kid to watch a whole day of FA Cup build-up on the BBC. It’s a Cup Final Knockout, Drag Racing from the Wembley turf and even a special edition of Quiz Ball (one for the teenagers, there), hosted by David Vine. Now, you’re more likely to see repeated episodes of Homes Under The Hammer and Bargain Hunt before Gary Lineker hosts his final Final at the Beeb.
I am not sure it can be saved now. I can imagine the Big Clubs demanding that they are exempted from needing to compete because of other commitments, like the utterly pointless World Club Championship. The best we can hope for is for the big clubs to field the youth team, as Liverpool effectively did this season, and give Plymouth the chance to turn them over, just in time for them to be relegated from the Championship.
Today, I have no access to a TV showing the game but even if I did, I wouldn’t bother. For me, Manchester City represent everything that’s wrong with ‘English’ football and that’s before we found out they’ve been cheating for years, which obviously they haven’t been, oh no. They’re entirely innocent and the world’s most expensive lawyers will secure the verdict City want.
From tomorrow, I shall commence the process of forgetting who played in this year’s game. Perhaps, that might even happen from today? Either way, it doesn’t matter. Yet another nail in the coffin of football tradition. Now, what time’s Leicester City v Ipswich Town Premier League relegation clash tomorrow?
