LET’S GET UP FOR THE CUP … WHILE WE STILL CAN
The fifth round of the FA Cup is a weekday thing now, for some reason, causing the more small ‘c’ conservative and superannuated among us to feel mild pangs of discombobulation, bordering on unease that occasionally segues into the sort of impotent rage that leads to high blood pressure, piles and Brexit. But there’s really no need to fret. Let’s be honest, most of the best FA Cup moments in history occurred under lights in the middle of the week anyway. Ricky Villa! Ryan Giggs! The great Chelsea-Leeds donnybrook! Bryan Robson scoring against Oldham from a yard out with his front tail! The list is endless, even if ours clearly ran out of steam after entry No 3.
So let’s embrace this new-fangled state of affairs, which you may as well do as it’s surely here to stay now, or at least until the FA Cup is abolished in 2031 by decree of all four members of the new streamlined Premier League (Newcastle Football Concern, Consolidated Mancunian, London Weekend and PSG). That’s our prediction, anyway, Football Daily will be long gone by then so there’s no point coming back to call us out. But yes, let’s embrace it, although to be fair we could do with a more interesting draw to sell the idea. The plum tie of the fifth round – in the old-fashioned sense of having potential shock value, as opposed to the modern one of being exactly the same sort of fixture you get week in, week out on Sky – is relegation-haunted Saints versus fourth-tier Grimsby. But the Lawrie McMenemy derby isn’t on until Wednesday night. Bah.
Instead, our attention must first turn to the only other potentially seismic shock of the fifth round, Manchester City’s visit to their Bristolian namesakes. The Robins surprisingly have the historical upper hand over the Citizens, 10-9 up in wins, and although they’ve lost all of the last four meetings, a sequence that stretches back to 1980, they gave Pep Guardiola’s side a run for their money in the 2018 Coca-Cola Cup semis. Manchester City needed a last-minute Sergio Agüero goal to win the first leg at the Etihad; in the second, Bristol City very nearly completed a three-goal comeback to force extra time on an evening when the C-teams glittered in the dark near the Ashton Gate.
Similar excitement this time is surely not beyond the realms, given that Bristol City are on a run of 12 matches without defeat, while Manchester City go into the game with one eye on the title race, the other on that elusive Big Cup. That’s if Pep’s performance in the pre-match press conference is anything to go by, given he spent most of it going out of his way to patronise Manchester United in the wake of their League Cup glory. “I remember when we won our first … everyone was so excited … the fourth time it was: ‘Well, it’s OK, another one, another day in the office.’” So can Manchester City – seemingly in been-here-done-that-mode, jaded by domestic trinkets, winners of the final 6-0 just four years ago – display the same drive as their hungry hosts, who last made the quarters in 1974? It’s the sort of imbalanced set-up that screams Midweek Magic of the Cup™. Savour it while you can, because if Football Daily turns out to be right for once, we may only have eight more editions to go.
LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE
Join Daniel Gallan from 7.45pm GMT for hot FA Cup MBM coverage of Fulham 2-1 Leeds, while Scott Murray will be on deck for Bristol City 1-3 Manchester City at 8pm.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“There is a part of me that realises I’m not the easiest to work with at times … but in some ways I think now I’m a bit more relaxed and easy-going. I’ve slowed down a bit. I am less confrontational. I’m a lot more thoughtful than I’ve been in the past and able to look at things in a different way. I suppose it’s a part of getting older … but I’m all right with that as well” – this is a lot of fun: Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson gets his chat on with Ben Fisher.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
“The year: 1962 (or thereabouts). The place: Annfield Park, Stirling, for a local derby between the mighty Albion and Stenhousemuir. In goal for the visitors was Charlie Ross, who was also our Latin teacher at Stirling high school. He wore Coke-bottle-thick glasses, but still kept a pretty good goal. During the match he pulled off one spectacular save, at which point came a voice from the crowd behind the goal: ‘Och, you’re a lucky b@stard … Sir!’” – David Speedie.
“Re: football and posties (Football Daily letters passim). A few years back when I worked for a well known parcel delivery company, I was tasked with a special journey to deliver a parcel to the home of Liverpool’s Lucas Leiva. I wasn’t actually aware of the recipient’s name until after I got strangely selected by my boss to carry out this task. It wasn’t until I got into his property (through the obligatory electric gates) that I realised I was wearing my woolly Everton hat. I tried to use the excuse of it being cold outside to said player but even though he didn’t seem to fall for it he still laughed it off” – Pete Cody.
Send your letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s winner of our prizeless letter o’ the day is … Pete Cody.
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