I went to Wembley in early 2014 to watch us beat Sunderland in what was a very good League Cup final and enjoyed every minute of it. Yaya Touré and Samir Nasri had to stadium in raptures as we ran out 3-1 winners and to see us lift a trophy was a rare and special moment which I’d love to experience again. But do we actually care about the competition that many write off as a ‘mickey-mouse’ cup?
As Crystal Palace travel up to the Etihad tonight, I wonder what the competition actually means to top-flight managers? Our last run-out in the competition was a refreshing change as Manuel Pellegrini opted for a very strong outfit including Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero- all of whom scored. This said, you can see the Chilean respects the competition and based on the fact he is a man in need of silverware, we can expect some strong line-ups to come in the years competition.
I also feel as though the League Cup is a competition that splits opinion, In a number of ways. There are those who want it to be used as a field for experiment and call for a youthful side, full of the most promising understudy’s to our first team. Others feel every competition and every game should be respected and full strength sides must be put out in order to plough on. Then there’s those, me included, who feel a balance is vital. Play a team that is lined with experience but pepper it with players of propitious talent á la Kelechi Iheanacho and Brandon Barker.
The latter model allows for players of that ilk to prove themselves and for squad depth players to get their chance. Chelsea did this well last season and even went on to win the competition- lets follow suit and do the same. After a trophy-less season last term, Pellegrini is being judged on the pieces of metal Vincent Kompany will lift come the end of the season- don’t expect him to take this game lightly.
Personally I’d love to win it, and with Arsenal and Chelsea crashing out to weaker opposition yesterday evening, we’ll have to be attentive tonight. The cup-disconnect amongst many fans needs dealing with and perhaps giving our top brass the chance to play in it will recoup the loss of interest we as a fan-base have lost towards it. Bring on tonight, come on City.
