The Real Importance of the League Cup

[Alioune DVToure]

The Carling Cup final is on 28th February. Should we appear in the final, we'll have another eleven league matches to play between then and the end of the season (assuming that the Chelsea away game currently scheduled for the 27th is rearranged for a LATER date). I think it's fair to say that by the end of February we'll most likely be floating somewhere between 3rd and 7th whatever happens. This has got me thinking. Should we win the League Cup, this would afford us with the Europa Cup safety net well before the season ends. Therefore, we could go out with the intention of winning every single game between March and May in an attempt to grab third or fourth with nothing to fear. If we don't win the League Cup and thus need to finish 5th or 6th to at least get into Europe, I can't help but feel that we'll take a more cautious approach in some away games that might hurt us. We're much better when we're dictating the tempo.
I suppose my point is that, silverware aside, the League Cup might just help to vault us into the Champions League places by allowing us to go for every game with nothing to lose. Just a thought...

[paulh]

very sensible suggestion. hopefully its the cup won and a top four finish

[LookMumImOnMCF.net]

I think the real importance is just the whole process of getting where we can in a competition and, hopefully, winning a trophy after years and years.

I don't really subscribe to your notion of us being more adventurous as an attacking force if we won a trophy. I'd like to think we set out to win every game as they come regardless. I think the only thing a LC win would give us is a confidence boost, though I respect your opinion of course.

[Alioune DVToure]

I think the real importance is just the whole process of getting where we can in a competition and, hopefully, winning a trophy after years and years.

I don't really subscribe to your notion of us being more adventurous as an attacking force if we won a trophy. I'd like to think we set out to win every game as they come regardless. I think the only thing a LC win would give us is a confidence boost, though I respect your opinion of course.

My point is that if we win the League Cup we can be gung-ho every week. If Europe is guaranteed through the League Cup we can even go to Chelsea all guns blazing and risk losing 10-0. By then, we might as well finish 11th as 5th. There would be less risk in going all out for 3rd/4th. The Liverpool game and the away derby are good examples of this; we were set up to avoid losing and risk falling behind the pack. By then, the likes of Liverpool, Spurs and Villa might be in the position where they can't afford to lose, but with the League Cup we'd have a licence to be more adventurous and really take the game to any team, home or away.

[simon12]

I know completely where you`re coming from but I don`t think MH does. No sarcasm from me I just don`t think he thinks like that

[spiv]

The importance of winning the carling cup means that our inbred country cousins can take that stinking banner down at the swamp for a start. It will also give the team a winning mentality,

[Pretty Boy Lee]

Still rather win the league cup than make champs league, thats just me though.

[Kiss_The_Goat]

Nah, mate. I think the importance of winning the League Cup will be the winning of a major Trophy for the first time in 30 odd years. From winning the first the others will come and I think the confidence and momentum from winning a trophy and the huge buzz it'll create will push us on to finish in the top 4. I dont think it will make any difference to the tatics, I think it'll be more the momentum.

[Alioune DVToure]

Still rather win the league cup than make champs league, thats just me though.

Me too if push came to shove. The Champions League has obscured ther fact that football is about winning things. Having said that, CL qualification is a better yardstick for the speed of our progress. So I'll take both.

[Kiss_The_Goat]

Still rather win the league cup than make champs league, thats just me though.

Me too! I want a trophy!

[mcfc1632]

I want to win the League Cup because it is a real and important trophy - our first for a long long time

But I really would rather it be possible for us not to be in the Europa League - since Uefa changed all the European Cup / European Cup Winners Cup competitions - the Uefa /Cup / Europa League is totally a devalued / meaningless competition - I would rather have CL or nothing - I do not want the plethora of games that come with the Europa League next season - if we do not achieve CL this season I am confident we will next and we do not need to be distracted

Just me - I think the competition has no value

[ant london]

I completely understand the reasoning behind the OP and I do think winning the CC would be hugely beneficial.

For me the main benefits are twofold:

- getting a 33 year monkey off our club's back and wiping clean the slate of underachievememt (basically a continuance of what Hughes has done so far...first European QF in however long last year, first domestic semi in 28 years last week). Those kind of records weigh on psyches of players, coaches....and fans.

More importantly though...

- winning is a habit. United's success with Taggart started with a domestic pot...ditto Liverpool under Benitez, Arsenal under Wenger and Chelsea's players have been quoted as saying that the CC is something they like to try to win each season so they have silverware each season and get the confidence to press for more. I'd take this further even and say that the foundations for Tottenham's re-emergence as contenders were actually laid when Ramos won them this trophy.

I don't want to be in the Europa League next season (other than potentially via the route Liverpool are now in it...which would not be a disaster in our case...rather quite a good learning experience in the CL group stages followed by a short potential run to the final) as the slog of the groups is such that I think it would seriously hamper our campaign to claim a top 4 slot next year.

but either way, the CC is a massive objective in my eyes. We can beat the scum and I think we will do so

CTID

[CityFanFromRome]

I don't want to be in the Europa League next season (other than potentially via the route Liverpool are now in it...which would not be a disaster in our case...rather quite a good learning experience in the CL group stages followed by a short potential run to the final) as the slog of the groups is such that I think it would seriously hamper our campaign to claim a top 4 slot next year.

but either way, the CC is a massive objective in my eyes. We can beat the scum and I think we will do so

CTID

I agree with your other points but the Europa League group stage is made of six games just like the CL group stage, I don't see much difference in that, if not that the teams you might meet in EL are probably easier to beat than those in CL, allowing for some turnover. About the possible long journeys to who knows where, there are some shitty places to go to in CL too, if you get some Eastern Europe team.

[ant london]

I don't want to be in the Europa League next season (other than potentially via the route Liverpool are now in it...which would not be a disaster in our case...rather quite a good learning experience in the CL group stages followed by a short potential run to the final) as the slog of the groups is such that I think it would seriously hamper our campaign to claim a top 4 slot next year.

but either way, the CC is a massive objective in my eyes. We can beat the scum and I think we will do so

CTID

I agree with your other points but the Europa League group stage is made of six games just like the CL group stage, I don't see much difference in that, if not that the teams you might meet in EL are probably easier to beat than those in CL, allowing for some turnover. About the possible long journeys to who knows where, there are some shitty places to go to in CL too, if you get some Eastern Europe team.

Yeah sorry, I wasn't very clear.

What I meant is that we have already managed to negotiate the UEFA/Europa group stages. It is quite a grind (as is the CL)

But two factors differentiate them for me (three factors if we weren't City)

(1) - (Cash is better in the CL - this is the kinda irrelevant one)

2 - The matches are played on a Wednesday and I think that the extra day's recovery would really benefit us in maintaining what, next season, should hopefully genuinely involve us being in the mix (in a large or lesser extent) to determine who wins the title

3 - The standard of opposition we'd face will prepare us much better for a decent tilt at both the Premiership and another more successful CL campaign

[CityFanFromRome]

Yeah sorry, I wasn't very clear.

What I meant is that we have already managed to negotiate the UEFA/Europa group stages. It is quite a grind (as is the CL)

But two factors differentiate them for me (three factors if we weren't City)

(1) - (Cash is better in the CL - this is the kinda irrelevant one)

2 - The matches are played on a Wednesday and I think that the extra day's recovery would really benefit us in maintaining what, next season, should hopefully genuinely involve us being in the mix (in a large or lesser extent) to determine who wins the title

3 - The standard of opposition we'd face will prepare us much better for a decent tilt at both the Premiership and another more successful CL campaign

Now these points I can agree with, although as I was saying before we could probably afford some turnover in the EL while doing so in the CL would see us leave the competition early IMO.

[Vhero]

Lets have it all eh?? Why the hell not :p 4th and a cup? How about both cups?

[Rag_hater]

For me the real importance of the cup as a few people have said is to instill the winning mentality with us fans and to some extent the players.
Spuds seemed to implode somewhat when they won it was like their season was over and hope the same thing doesn't happen to us if when we win it.
As for the EL having no value as MCFC wrote I dont feel that way about it at all.
I really get envious when I see Fulham playing Roma for example, sad that its not us.
And the majority of the teams in it this year I would think are happy to be in it and dont feel it has been devalued with the new format and name change.
Fuck its the only Euro success we have in our history,I'd love to have it again.