Why we should target the FA Cup

The FA Cup 3rd Round is fast approaching and the usual argument of “forget it, play the second eleven because the league and finishing in the top 4 are more important” is appearing on countless Tottenham message boards. So this begs the question, should Tottenham play weakened sides the FA Cup in order to reduce fixture congestion and increase chances of a higher position in the league?

The answer to this question, in my opinion, is a resounding no. The FA Cup is an integral part of the history and tradition of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and it would be a disgrace to disrespect the competition. Ask any Tottenham fan what their most memorable moments supporting Tottenham are and the three most likely answers are 1.) Gascoigne’s free kick, 2.) “It’s still Ricky Villa!!!” and 3.) (For the older generation) winning the double in 1961.

What do those three moments have in common? They all are related to the FA Cup.

Tottenham and the FA Cup are two things that go hand in hand. Spurs were the first team to win the FA Cup in the 20th century (and also the last non-league side to lift the trophy), were the first team to complete the league and cup double in the 20th century, and have won the competition eight times (third most behind our friends from South London and Manchester United).

Most Spurs fans also know by heart the lyrics to the chorus of “Ossie’s Dream”, the song recorded for the 1981 FA Cup final with its famous line of “in da cup for Tottingham” recorded by none other than star Argentinian player Osvaldo Ardiles. In fact, “Spurs are on their way to Wembley” is heard from the Park Lane during every single cup tie at White Hart Lane (even in the Europa League, where the final destination is not even Wembley). Other cup final songs include “Come on You Spurs” (1982), “Hot Shot Tottenham” (1987) and “When the Year Ends in One” (1991), which are all included in every devoted Tottenham fan’s repertoire.

[linequote]Especially with such a young squad, a culture of winning needs to be engrained and the FA Cup would be the perfect way to get the ball rolling on that.[/linequote]

However, Tottenham fans of the younger generations (including myself) have never experienced such incredible heights in the clubs history. Bar two League Cup triumphs in 1999 and 2008, Tottenham have not won a major trophy since the 1991 FA Cup and have not been to the final of the FA Cup since then.

Although Spurs have been to six semi-finals since then (with three of them played at Wembley), they have lost all six and as a result no fan under the age of twenty-five is able to say that they have personally experienced Cup Final day with Tottenham Hotspur.

Tottenham are not a big enough club with a long track record of success (especially in the last twenty five years) to be able to pick and choose which competitions to target. Especially with such a young squad, a culture of winning needs to be engrained and the FA Cup would be the perfect way to get the ball rolling on that.

Manchester City won the FA Cup the year before winning the Premier League in 2012, which started to blood a culture of winning into their newly assembled mish-mash of overpaid superstars who had very little previous taste of silverware. Very few players in the current Tottenham squad have won a trophy at first team level, so why should we just give up the chance to win one that only requires winning six matches?

As we Tottenham fans ridicule our North London neighbours about a “Fourth Place Trophy” and how they never won anything for nine years, isn’t it quite hypocritical to give up the chance of a trophy to chase precisely that?

Finishing fourth place is not a trophy, while it does grant access to the seemingly elusive UEFA Champions League it is not the be all and end all of supporting Spurs. Six years ago the top four teams in the Premier League were ahead of the rest of the chasing pack (including Tottenham) by leaps and bounds and finishing fourth was necessary to break that stranglehold held by Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Woolwich.

[linequote]There was a definitive buzz around White Hart Lane brought about by the impending trip to Wembley that invigorated everyone associated with the club[/linequote]

However, with a vastly increased domestic TV contract, the rise to prominence of smaller clubs like Leicester City and Crystal Palace and the relative demise of the financial heavyweights, the need to finish in the top four is not as great as it once was. This current Tottenham side are the youngest in the Premier League and will only improve from here on out.

Thirty years from now, most Tottenham supporters would not harbour such strong memories of a fourth place finish in the league but many would remember an FA Cup triumph. This is evidenced by such fond memories of past cup exploits as discussed earlier in this article.

Many fans also believe that cup runs lead to a dip in league form. I do not believe this is true. A perfect example of this is Tottenham last season. The time between defeating Newcastle 4-0 in the League Cup quarter final and the final with Chelsea in the beginning of March also coincided with the best run of form Tottenham had all season. This run of form included the memorable victories at White Hart Lane over Chelsea and Woolwich as well as a dramatic last gasp equalizer to deny our friends from East London satisfaction. There was a definitive buzz around White Hart Lane brought about by the impending trip to Wembley that invigorated everyone associated with the club.

After the final defeat to Chelsea, there was a sense of a let-down, lethargy and dejection throughout the last twelve league fixtures despite the fact that Spurs were still in with a realistic shout of finishing in the top four (only 3 points off 4th before the 3-0 loss at Old Trafford on March 15th).

Every English football fan’s dream is to see their team play at Wembley and nothing excites fans more than a cup run and a long run in the FA Cup would do just that. Another example of how cup runs can positively impact league form is Aston Villa last season. When Tim Sherwood took over they were in the bottom three, but a run to the FA Cup Final coincided with a strong run of league matches that eventually steered Villa to safety.

[linequote]It is a competition that is deeply entrenched with the tradition and history of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and provides another opportunity to break a trophy drought[/linequote]

It also needs to be said that the FA Cup provides the easiest route to silverware. Although the Europa League requires less rounds (five instead of six), the ties are two legged and requires playing two matches a week throughout the entire second half of the season. In addition, there are twelve or fifteen really strong clubs still in the Europa League and many will be going all out to win it. The FA Cup, meanwhile, only requires playing one match per week (excluding replays) and features lesser opponents.

If Spurs get past Leicester, they face a greater than fifty percent chance of drawing a non-Premier League club in Round 4 and still decent chances of drawing lower league clubs after that (Woolwich only faced two Premier League teams before the final last year). The Europa League is Europe’s secondary cup competition, while the FA Cup is England’s premier domestic cup competition so for that reason alone I think the FA Cup would also be more prestigious than the Europa League.

All in all, I think Tottenham fans are foolish to suggest not taking the FA Cup seriously. It is a competition that is deeply entrenched with the tradition and history of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and provides another opportunity to break a trophy drought that is too long. Let me know your thoughts about the FA Cup in the comments.