The Football Association and the Premier League should hang their heads in shame. They have left Pep Guardiola with no choice but to potentially field a weakened team in the FA Cup final, a scenario that undermines the prestige of English football's oldest knockout competition.
The Premier League has handed Manchester City's manager a serious headache by insisting his side travel to Bournemouth only three days after they face Chelsea in the FA Cup final at Wembley. This scheduling clash has forced Guardiola into a dilemma: prioritize the Premier League title race or the FA Cup showpiece.
The Depth of City's Squad
As football's market forces tend to be variable, it was hard to put an exact market value on Manchester City's bench for the FA Cup semi-final against Southampton. But it would not be significantly shy of £500 million. Guardiola's squad is reasonably healthy right now. If it stays that way, three games in seven days should be manageable when you consider the depth and worth of the personnel at his disposal.
However, when the time comes for the City manager to plan his approach to a run of fixtures that will see his side play Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium on May 13, Chelsea at Wembley on May 16, and Bournemouth away on May 19, it is clear which one will be deemed the least important. And who would ever have thought that about an FA Cup final?
Reasons for Fixture Congestion
The reasons why these fixture conundrums occur are multiple. The ludicrous expansion of the Champions League—and all European club competitions—is most definitely one. But the bottom line is that City's Premier League game at Bournemouth has been rescheduled because the FA Cup is being played DURING the Premier League season. The tradition of having the FA Cup final as the crowning match of the top level's domestic season was surrendered last year. It was an unforgivable concession by the Football Association.
Now that it has been confirmed City will have to travel to Bournemouth for a Premier League match on the Tuesday following the cup final, there is the serious prospect of Guardiola playing a second-choice team against Chelsea at Wembley. And that prospect should deeply embarrass the FA and the Premier League.
Scrapping of Replays
Don't forget, they have also scrapped replays from the first round onwards, much to the consternation of lower league clubs. By hoping to get fixtures switched around, City were trying to gain an extra edge in a hectic period and they cannot be blamed for that. But they should be able to cope with a schedule that sees them play six games in 21 days. The occasion to suffer, though, is the game that was once the showpiece event of the entire English football season.
It did not just have its own day, it had its own weekend. Now, it is sandwiched by Premier League fixtures. To begin with, it was suggested that the Friday night before the cup final would be kept clear but Chelsea played Manchester United at that time instead. This season, it will be with Aston Villa versus Liverpool or Manchester United versus Nottingham Forest on the Friday night. The FA Cup is in danger of becoming just another game that weekend.
Guardiola's Strategy
It will be a test of Guardiola's strategy, that is for sure. There is every chance he might decide that three games in seven days would be too much to ask of Erling Haaland, for example. Guardiola might well want to prove a point. While it is understandable the Premier League did not 'switch' the Palace and Bournemouth fixtures, would it have been that much of a problem to push City's trip to the Vitality Stadium back a day?
Presumably, that was not feasible because it would have meant a clash with the Europa League final, which is certain to feature a Premier League club. But surely all parties could have lived with that? And that might have meant Guardiola fielding a stronger team than the one he will now put out in the FA Cup final. He might yet go to Wembley with all his big guns firing from the off. But you would not blame him if he didn't.
