FA cup replays: A Once Labelled Fairy-Tale That Has Turned Into The Nightmare Fixture?

By Jake Clay – @JakeClay17 When the final whistle went at the New Meadow Stadium there was that brief feeling of the FA cup spirit, the shock and jubilation of the underdogs ‘Shrews’ earning the chance of a lifetime to play at Anfield. Then the bubble burst moment came when Shrewsbury’s hero Jason Cummings found out on live TV that Jurgen Klopp and his senior players would not be at the replay, instead it would be Neil Critchley and the U23’s that would be playing Shrewsbury during the February winter break. The reality is this is a fixture Klopp could have done without and has demonstrated this by announcing the same team that played the Carabao Cup quarter final tie against Aston Villa while his side were away at the Club World Cup will be lining up in the Anfield replay. This leaves the lingering question of whether FA cup replays still embody the magic of the competition as they appear to be a growing nuisance for Premier League clubs, especially the top teams where their calendars already are packed with games without the input of trips to 10,000 capacity stadiums . After a gruelling Christmas period where 74 injuries were accumulated by all 20 Premier League clubs compared to 214 from August to December has reflected what has been a challenging festive period for English top tier teams. This has led to many complaints by Premier League managers, including Klopp that their players are playing too much football and the FA Cup 3^rd round fixture shoehorned in at the start of the year has not helped the overload of games. Though the complications over the FA cup’s structure have carried on into the 4^th round as the new February winter break means that Premier League clubs will have time off from league fixtures. This has prompted Klopp’s decision to rest his senior players and himself from the replay due to promising his players he would give them a break. The decision to protect his players from the hectic fixture schedule has exposed the LFC manager to criticism for not taking the competition seriously. It’s been regarded as a lack of respect towards the opposition who fought for the right to play Liverpool FC in a serious cup tie, but the competitiveness is seen to have evaporated without the presence of Liverpool’s first team players.

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It will be a disappointment for the Shrewsbury fans travelling up feeling like Liverpool are treating it like second fiddle as even winning at Anfield will feel like a hollow victory as the team the league one side will be knocking out a group of academy players. Therefore, are more of the top teams going to follow Liverpool’s approach of playing 18-year-old kids against lower league opposition if the are forced to play another game they don’t see as a priority. If this is the case, why not finish the tie in one game and give Shrewsbury the chance to make history in a penalty shoot out after 90 minutes or extra time. It would eliminate a headache Klopp didn’t want and still provide the entertainment viewers want to see. In terms of finances, Shrewsbury would benefit from the funds from the FA from reaching the next round as well as the TV money meaning the revenue from the replay tickets is made up by the fact of being in the last 16 of the FA Cup. Klopp not being in the home dugout may be perceived as arrogant from some yet looking at the wider context of the season preparing for Premier League fixtures week after week alongside an intensive Champions League group will need a breather eventually. That is what the ex-Borussia Dortmund manager has been calling out for since he arrived from England after enjoying the pros of recuperating halfway through the season with his previous club gave his players a chance to refresh themselves ahead of the home stretch at the backend of the season and went on to win Bundesliga titles. Hence, he can’t contradict himself and ask his players to train for a 4^th round replay which they probably won’t play any part in and denying them time away from the stresses of being a Primer League footballer. His hands remain tied and has no choice but to turn to the club’s youth and give them an opportunity. As much as Shrewsbury will bemoan the lack of seriousness Klopp has taken towards the replay at Anfield but when so much is on the line in other competitions the FA Cup is not ranked highly. Liverpool fans would have swapped the 2006 ‘Gerrard final’ in return for seeing the same man lift the Premier League title and they would rather Klopp finish off the job of winning the club’s first PL title over analysing videos of Jason Cummings’s movement for a 4^th round FA cup replay. By Jake Clay -@JakeClay17