What do you reckon to Big Sam's comments about the FA Cup? If I was a Bolton fan I'd be pretty cheesed off if my manager said he was glad we had gone out. I can understand him wanting to put Premiership survival at the top of his list of priorities, but to blithely state that he is glad to have had an early FA Cup exit is an insult to the fans IMO. Be interested to hear your thoughts. Edit - this is in the wrong forum but fuck it.
It's of national importance mate! I reckon Big Sam's comments would usually be well out of order, Premiership survival or not. But this season they are already in the League Cup semifinal, which is two legs, and have lost a player or two for the African Nations (I know at least Okocha). So I can see where he's coming from.
Let me put it this way: I'm fucking glad we're out of the FA Cup. We don't have the squad to push for a place in the Carling Cup final, a European place in the Premiership (yep, I'll get to that in a sec) AND play in the FA Cup. The danger of relegation is not haunting Bolton this season. It's not about us being worried that our players will get injured and that we won't survive in the Prem, we have enough depth to avoid that. It's about our key players getting injured and us dropping places in the league and thus costing us millions in potential 'winnings'. With a fully fit squad we can challenge for a UEFA cup spot, that's what Sam's looking at. The Carling Cup semi-finals are of great importance to the club now because we're two games from a major final and possibly a route into Europe (again) We're in debt at the Reebok, a sucessful season culminating in a Eurpoean place would go some way to cutting the debt in half. For that we need a fully fit squad and that's why the FA Cup exit is welcome. Having said that we played a lot of kids on the night and Sams comments was derogatory to them. He was kind of saying "Do your best out there lads, I don't want or expect you to win." He should have at least pretended to be a bit disappointed then put a positve spin on it.
A sign of the times i'm afraid - and it's not a given that it's an improvement for the game in general when a manager can come right out and say something like that and still keep his job! Of course ever since Utd went off to that silly mid season tourney it's become acceptable, it seems, to ridicule the national cups.This is an improvement? I understand where Bolton are coming from - but that doesn't make it right. One thing i have always admired about our foreign coach is that he has never slighted any of the cup comps.(for whatever reason) There is something inherently wrong with the game when 4th/5th place in the league is considered more successful than winning the FA Cup.
Dont get me wrong because i was gutted when Blackpool sacked Allerdyce, but Big Sam has to be the biggest *#*#*#*#ing moaner the game has ever seen. "Why do the referees hate us?" or "Why isnt Kevin Nolan in the England Squad" or what about "Why does Okocha have to go to the African Nations Cup"! If whinging was a sport, Allerdyce would be the champion