They were better than us, but we were awful. That is the point. I don't care about how Sunderland play, I'm only worried about Saints. If we played like we can, we would have played well and created more chances, and probably have won the game or certainly not lost it.
When all the dust has settled, the team we fielded should have been able to win that game. The full squad had the most one-sided of 2-2 draws previously and Poch must have guessed the Poyet would field a weakened side, which he did. I am not sure that I agree that Sunderland played well; better than us at least until the final 15 minutes, yes, but it wasn't a spectacle, was it? I find it very unlikely that the players weren't interested, but I think that Boruc should have played. It looked to me that KD's poor distribution and hesitant movement gave the rest of the team the jitters.
CBK I am not disagreeing with you at all. It's the reason why I have lost interested in the Cups. We take the piss just as much as most teams. It makes a joke of the cups that I use to get excited over and go to every game.
Only because the way we and other teams treat the cups these days. As I have said I use to love going to every cup game. But now how we and other teams go about the cups games isn't right.
Not about how many shots they had more about how difficult they made it for us. How tough they were to break down.
Pretty pissed off with that, we had an excellent chance of winning the cup. Now the season's just going to peter out into nothing-ness ... cheers guys! How dull.
Have to say Beefy has a point . The FA cup used to be a REAL event , started in the morning with TV crews following each team from breakfast at the hotel , on the coach to the stadium , see the players walking around the pitch all suited up , relishing the moment . It lasted ALL day . At least this year it will be played AFTER the conclusion of the PL season . Of course any fan who's team wins it will be happy , but it is NOT treated by the clubs ( PL in particular ) with the respect it deserves .
Pochettinio needs to come out, himself, and say why he hasn't taken this seriously. No good hiding behind his assistant.
There isn't any money in it, and the secondary prize (Europey) is viewed as a poisoned chalice by many. Combine those two things and, from a strictly ruthless business perspective, there is little incentive to make it a priority. If/when Champions League expands and those automatic spots become valuable, I'd imagine that the cups will take on renewed relevance. It's a shame that the answer to "there's too much money and it's skewing priorities" is "let's dangle more money", but that's modern sports.
By basically just standing there on the edge of the area whilst Saints pissed about trying to find the "perfect pass" or put aimless balls into Lambert (but mostly 5 yards over his head). It was hardly a defensively masterclass ala George Graham's Arsenal.
I don't understand how people got this idea. We were only in the 5th round with Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Everton still in it. Where did the idea that we had a great chance of winning the cup from? Sure we had a chance, just like everyone else but a great chance - come off it!
Clearly the manager and the players agreed with you. They clearly didn't think we had a great chance of winning the cup, or of beating the mighty Sunderland reserve side either.
Well two of the big teams you mentioned definitely won't be in the next round. It wasn't an "excellent" chance but it was as good a chance as we're likely to get. Win today and we're in the quarter finals, one game from Wembley, and on our day (if we can be bothered) we can beat any team. To say "we might not win it so why bother" is stupid and it's a massive disappointment for me. That performance felt like a slap in the face.
With our current league position and a chance to reach the last eight today was a wasted opportunity. Pochettino p*ssed me off at Fulham when he marched off across the pitch with his head down every step of the way. Didn't even look at our supporters who were there in great numbers and gave great support. Just niggles me, it wouldn't hurt him to acknowledge the fans. But he really p*ssed me off today with that team selection, hindsight a great thing but I honestly knew we would struggle. Again no logic considering our league position. Then Perus comes on and says "We're a little disappointed." If we were embroiled in relegation or had champions league to worry about I could see your point. I'm probably not only Saints fan gutted by todays selection/display but I doubt if MP is too bothered by our exit from the FA Cup which he see's as a distraction.
Tbf we dont know what he has been told by KL. Maybe his target is to finish as high as possible and that's why he changed the team. The FA Cup hasnt got the stature it used to have. It's all about the PL now.
I'm astonished by the overreaction by most people on here. Sure it's a bad performance and result but I've been a Saints fan long enough to have seen far worse days than this. People need to look at the bigger picture.
