Hey,
So, another World Cup, another defeat then for Ingerland. One thing which seems different this time around is that the ready-made scapegoat, Frank Lampard's clear goal, has been kept in it's box. Heck, I doubt they are even going to take it out of it's packaging. No point, really. Germany were youthful, vibrant, energetic and creative. I don't think any of those words could be applied to England yesterday. What is important is that, rather than blame isolated incidents on failure, English football has had to re-evaluate it's position in the world of football. The best league in the world? Possibly, but is a poor national side a price worth paying? Fans probably wouldn't mind seeing chances given to younger players, but one would wonder if investors would feel the same. The bleak reality is, as much as we would like to believe, football is not about the supporters anymore, it is about the chequebook. Or chip and pin, I guess, if you hate outdated clichés. You know, like "England are the better team on paper". For more information, see Alan Hansen.
We speak of grass-roots football, yet we continue to play during the time of year in which, ironically, there is not much grass to play on at all. The continuation of the football calendar throughout the frankly awful months of December and January is holding English (and Scottish I must add) back. I can only think of two reasons why they continue to play throughout the worst of winter; nostalgia for the FA Cup third round and money. Stupid, stupid money.
Now, The FA and others will disagree with the final point, for it is that the football calendar is simply too congested to allow a four-week break in the middle of it. But I reckon I have a solution, or at least, a possible solution; The Carling Cup. If a Conservative administration were to start slashing the FA, I'm pretty convinced that the Carling Cup would face the metaphorical axe. The reasons are as follows;
1) It takes it up time.
From late September onwards, the Carling Cup takes up most of the English non-European midweek slots. To compound this the semi-finals, more often than not competed amongst "bigger teams", are over two-legs, taking up even more time as well as the final on a Sunday. These mid-week slots could be used for League matches, to maintain the tradition of FA Cup matches being played on a Saturday. Or whenever the television channels says.
2) Does anyone actually like it?
I'm not too sure if anyone actually takes the Carling Cup seriously. We know Arsene Wenger doesn't, judging from his team selection in recent seasons. Unlike the FA Cup, which has a heritage to cling on to, the Carling Cup simply doesn't have that much of a history. Formed in 1960, no one can really think of a "classic" League Cup moment. Leicester won it a couple of times, I think? A final at Wembley is nice, but the reward for winning the trophy is a place in the Europa League. If they had the choice between a lump sum and a place in the Europa League, I'm pretty sure most teams would take the money.
3) We shouldn't be scared of change.
If UEFA can change the final of the Champions League to a Saturday, introduce extra officials and dissolve the Cup Winners' Cup (remember that?) then stopping the Carling Cup doesn't seem that big a deal. Other countries, like Italy, Spain and Germany (ironic) only have the one major domestic cup competition. It just makes sense.
Overall, I understand the hypocrisy of using the Carling Cup as a scapegoat for England's demise, when I started my argument by saying that this blame culture was over. Yet, to me, it would emphasise a change in priorities from the money men to the what the FA should care the most about, their national team.
DC
x
No comments:
Post a Comment