With Arsenal looking to progress to the F.A. Cup Semi Final today against Lincoln City, will we play a weakened team against our second non-league opponents in this Cup run. Going back through the rounds this year Arsene Wenger has used Cup competitions to rest first team players but could this be mistaken as disrespect. It’s this kind of “disrespect” that lead to giant-killing being very interesting indeed.
It’s been argued that top teams not fielding full strength teams in Cup games, especially against lower league clubs, is disrespectful to not just those clubs but also the competitions themselves. Which has led people to believe that the F.A. Cup has lost its prestige.
When these top teams do field weaker teams it may often seem like they aren’t taking the competition seriously but in fact they may just be trying to protect their better players from injury. We just have to look back to the last round of the FA Cup to see Arsenal resting Danny Welbeck against non-league Sutton United.
However, rather than playing a team full of inexperience Wenger has used a balance of youth and experience in these games which I think is how it should be done. In the week Wenger said “I have always decided to play the team that has a good chance to qualify”. Which has been clear in previous rounds with first team regulars like Theo Walcott appearing. Nevertheless with teams the size of Arsenal, no matter which team is picked, fans will expect them to qualify.
But the debate thickens when looking at the underdog’s teams on match day which more often than not is their strongest team. This was on show in the 5th Round against Sutton who threw everything at the game. With former Gunners Craig Eastmond and Roarie Deacon playing it could be argued that they were even more motivated for the game but that doesn’t take anything away from the team’s performance.
Unlike Arsenal, every Sutton player seemed more motivated for the tie but Arsenal’s quality ultimately shown through. Even though the selection didn’t seem like Arsenal were undermining Sutton it did seem that way on the pitch, so maybe it isn’t always the teams that are picked that seem disrespectful but the performance.
Maybe this FA Cup Quarter Final won’t be as memorable as other more recent ones, like the 2-1 win at Old Trafford a couple of seasons ago when Welbeck clinched victory for Arsenal after rounding David de Gea, but it could be if we underestimate our opponents.
Lincoln City are sure to be up for a game at The Emirates and will, like Sutton, try their best to leave their mark on the game. They’ve already beaten Premier League opposition in Burnley and who’s to say they can’t do it again. With a Semi Final at Wembley up for grabs it’ll be silly to think that they’ll put out a weakened side so why should Arsenal.
Some may think that it means more to lower league sides to fulfil ‘the magic of the cup’ and that top teams don’t care as much. But these cup games bring opportunities for bigger clubs because they would probably be prioritised less by the manager than a Champions League knockout game. However players who are seen as the underdogs may prioritise these Cup games highly as they can prove themselves on the big stage, against world class talents.
But for top Premier League clubs, games like these may be good to introduce younger players into the first team who may hopefully make a breakthrough. Arsenal saw this last year with Alex Iwobi who started off being played in early Cup games and managed to make is way into the first team as a regular. This season we’ve seen Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Jeff Reine-Adelaide in numerous cup games so maybe we’ll see them in around the Arsenal first team on a regular basis in the near future.
So maybe when top Premier League clubs don’t play their world class players, it isn’t out of disrespect, but is to help accommodate everyone in the squad. Yes lower league clubs may play their strongest teams but I feel taken into perspective how much each team prioritises the game the team selections are often fair on both sides to make an entertaining game.
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