Will We Ever Take The League Cup Seriously?
It is around this time of year, that the footballing nation groans collectively as the Capital One Cup comes rolling back into town. There is nothing more exciting and highly anticipated than watching a tired Scunthorpe United and Stoke City reserves kick lumps out of each other in front of one man and his dog. The league cup has long since lost any glamour that was associated with the competition and for most sides it is either a general annoyance or a convenient back door into European football.
Looking at the fixtures we have in the League Cup tonight makes pretty grim reading for the football fan looking for an exciting game to watch. Sky have gone for the obvious game to television in Arsenal v Chelsea but you are unlikely to be watching anywhere near full strength sides from either team. It’s more likely to be played at a friendly pace with a few mistakes and mishaps providing the sources of any goals for either team. This of course does not single them out as i expect it to be the same across today and tomorrow’s matches. Most Premier League clubs simply treat the League Cup as a chance to try out some of their younger players and give them some first team action, but this tends to severely limit the quality of football being played in the matches. It also causes the interest level within the game to drop. On very rare occasions there are still fairytale stories from this competition but they are few and far between. Bradford City last year is the largest i can think of and it truly did captivate people around the game, but to think that will happen every year is to delude oneself. This year i fully expect the trophy to be won by a team finishing in the top 4 of the Premier League, either playing another side in a similar position or a mid table top flight club. The question is, is that what we want to see? Or do we want to see teams like Bradford City living the fairytale more often?
How do we achieve a situation like this, or simply make it more interesting for fans and viewers to watch? How do we give the League Cup back it’s glamour? One idea that has been batted around in recent years is to give the League Cup the same European potential as the FA Cup, so the runner up will be able to qualify for Europe. I feel this is a particularly good idea as it may encourage some of the smaller clubs to try that little bit harder and make the cup more competitive as well meaning the larger sides will have to field stronger sides or run the risk of getting knocked out. Another idea is turning the competition into a competition where the Premier league clubs have to fill a certain quota of players from first team football. This will prevent them from playing an entire youth squad in their cup ties. A move like this is very unlikely as it would be met with distaste from the larger sides who would argue that they need to play weakened sides in these games in order to rest players for more important Premier League and European cup competitions. Regardless of what the solution is, it is very clear that something needs to be done before all interest is lost in the competition.
Photo courtesy of Rameez Sadikot
About the Author
SYC Matt A football fan just like the rest of us. Battling with the usual ups and downs that come with supporting one of the less glamorous teams. Crusader for footballing justice.
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