We’re going to London again. Spurs, FA Cup if you’d lost track.
The third round of the FA Cup. It should be the most romantic day of the season; plumbers and electricians on the same pitch as world-famous internationals, clubs earning a season’s gate money in one afternoon, rosy-cheeked scallywags running on at the final whistle to congratulate their gallantly-losing heroes. And most of all, one set of supporters convinced that this really is our year for the FA Cup.
That’s the idea but all that romantic nonsense went a long time ago. Now you get the whole farrago spread across four days and a load of reserves no matter what level their team might be, because finishing three places higher in the Championship is more important than a chance of glory. It’s still our year though, and don’t let anyone tell you different.
This time it’s Spurs’ chance to be in our way. We’ll have nine thousand there, which is our biggest away turnout for many a year and they’ll probably all have a different opinion about how seriously we should be taking it. Winning the thing is long overdue but with a title chase (keep saying it and it’ll come true), top four and the fallback position of the Europa League to worry about, the cup might be put to one side this year. How seriously we are taking it will be known when the team is announced. There’s bound to be a few changes but how many is a mystery known only to Unai.
The opposition, who are in contention for the hotly-contested title of north London’s most up themselves club, haven’t got much else to bother with apart from bettering last season’s seventeenth place. They finished below Wolves. Their manager might last the season, or the week. We’ve started to have a good record against them and making it last a bit longer shouldn’t be beyond the wit of whoever does start. Who knows, the new Brazilian might get a look-in.
