Match Day Thread FA Cup 4th Round Replay. Tottenham V Southampton Wednesday 5th February 19:45

Well a cup run keeps it alive doesn't it? Like I've said you don't have to win it for it to be exciting.

You always finish where you deserve to in the league, you can luck your way through a cup competition imo.

A bit like when we made the semis two years ago.

 

24 hours ago, I was convinced we were on our way to Wembley. But on the other hand, 2 months ago I was convinced we were on our way to the Championship. Funny old game.

 

Why would it keep it alive any more than a run in the league?

You can luck your way through a cup but also luck your way out of it as we just did. That's why as a team playing well the league gives us better odds.

Just like it did when we got into europe twice a couple of seasons ago.

You don't have to win it for it to be exciting.

 

Because I have little to no interest in the league? I've never made a secret of the fact I'm cups before league and it's even more so now var is here and I'm going to less games.

The cup/s still offer a bit of magic that has completely gone elsewhere in football to me.

I understand that neither are particularly likely but fallling a bit short in the cup by say, reaching the semis is far more interesting than falling short in the hunt for Europe and finishing tenth.

The season's dead for me as we won't get relegated and won't qualify for Europe so I'm just generally a bit apathetic about it all. Wasn't expecting anyone to agree, just having my annual out the FA Cup rant.





Oh well, only four months 'til football comes home.

 

Highlights from the OS:
https://www.southamptonfc.com/news/...ottenham-3-2-southampton-fa-cup-replay-201920

The pen was 100% a dive by the cheating Son of a bitch. VAR once again was useless as what could be a more clear and obvious error than awarding a penalty for a blatant dive?

Looked like a great performance which we should have won.

 

Out of interest have you seen our remaining fixtures? Theyre very kind

Other than Man City at home our hardest are against our rivals for Europe: Everton, Sheffield West Ham, Man united and Arsenal. You could actually treat that as a cup run because if we do well in those 6 pointers it will be hard not to qualify.

 

Only problem with that is we tend to be better against the better sides! Definitely back us more for Spuds away than Burnley at home for example

 

The race for 12th starts here guys.

 

I've still got a charidee bet to win with SaintsOldBoy for a top ten finish...

#excited

 

Absolutely.

As it happens, there's an article on the BBC website today which highlights that in the past five seasons, the big six have occupied 28 of the 30 top six finishes. That's two just occasions of a non-big side breaking in there, to qualify for Europe (I know that 7th can sometimes mean Europe).

Sounds like nothing at all. And indeed it is. But compared to the FA Cup - where just once in 11 years, just twice in 24 years, and just three times in 30 years, has it been won by a non-big six side - it's actually quite a lot.

Winning the FA Cup might sound way more achievable than success in the league, but it really isn't. The facts tell a totally different story.

And never more is that true than this season. Whereby the last 16 of the FA Cup contains the entire big six (I know it would have only been five of them, had we progressed) - including quite possibly one of the greatest team to ever exist in English football - but yet in the PL, Arsenal are having a complete disaster, whilst Utd, Spurs and Chelsea are hardly fairing much better. Leicester have burst through the door, and who knows if others might join them in the top 6.

Do I think we will finish 6th (or 5th, or 7th)? No. Like you, I only see it as a slim chance. But it's still a heck of a bigger chance than winning the FA Cup was ever going to be. Sure, it's disappointing that the cup run is over. Very disappointing. But I'm in no doubt that it was going to end at some point anyway.

 

The injury to JWP, done by a stud. I have seen a picture and it ain’t pretty.
Aren’t studs checked before games for sharpness etc?
Should Sessegnon have been ordered to change his boots following the injury, considering the damage done by his stud?

 

If anyone fancies watching it all again:

https://www.footballorgin.com/tottenham-hotspur-vs-southampton-full-match-fa-cup-5-february-2020/

 

Interesting that James put a ferocious but perfectly fair tackle in on Sessegnon in the first match, which left the Spurs player staggering. Am I being paranoid to suspect a bit of pay-back?

 

I am happy to give him the benefit of the doubt as looking at his face as soon as he did it, he was mortified.

 

Pretty sure there was no malice. The spurs player looked pretty shocked at the result of his tackle

 

Fair enough, I was just wondering. Glad James isn’t as badly hurt as was first thought anyway.

 

Not if you keep going to games, no!

 

I've only done 3 aways in the league this season tbf. Might try and get to Watford though.

 

*notes Libby's attendance down for the predictions game*