To be the leading man in slightly smaller productions, or to be an understudy for the elite? It’s not the most significant consequence of the financial stratification of modern football but what the division of the game into superclubs and the rest has done is make that decision far more urgent for promising young players. Which is why, quite apart from anything else, the domestic cup competitions matter. It’s hardly the romance of old, the epic tales of knockout glory that thrilled previous eras, but the FA Cup offers a stage on which the next generation can test themselves.
But there are supporting casts and supporting casts. Manchester City, in the 15th year of the Abu Dhabi project, boosted not merely by the extent of the resources that have been invested but the intelligence with which that money has been spent, can look to their bench and call upon a World Cup winner who has started only three league games this season.
