Stan

FFS not now @MUFC.

Thanks, have added!

all kick-offs BST Friday 19th April, 2024 Athletic Bilbao vs Granada, 20.00 Saturday 20th April, 2024 Celta Vigo vs Las Palmas, 13.00 Rayo Vallecano vs Osasuna, 15.15 Valencia vs Real Betis, 17.30 Girona vs Cadiz, 20.00 Sunday 21st April, 2024 Getafe vs Real Sociedad, 13.00 Almeria vs Villarreal, 15.15 Deportivo Alaves vs Atletico Madrid, 17.30 Real Madrid vs Barcelona, 20.00 Monday 22nd April, 2024 Sevilla vs Mallorca, 20.00

all kick-offs 14.30 (BST) unless stated Friday 19th April, 2024 Frankfurt vs Augsburg, 19.30 Saturday 20th April, 2024 Wolfsburg vs Bochum Koln vs Darmstadt Hoffenheim vs Borussia Monchengladbach Heidenheim vs RB Leipzig Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich, 17.30 Sunday 21st April, 2024 Werder Bremen vs Stuttgart Borussia Dortmund vs Bayer Leverkusen, 16.30 Freiburg vs Mainz, 18.30 - Darmstadt will be relegated if they lose and Mainz draw/win, or they draw and Bochum draw + Mainz win

And that money going to smaller clubs is part of the competition. My point being is that the value of this competition lies in what clubs are within it. And it might surprise you to realise that there are hundreds of other clubs that partake in this competition, not just clubs that feel it 'gets in the way'. Tell me one good reason why the PL should dictate on scrapping replays in the 1st and 2nd rounds when it doesn't even affect them? What jurisdiction to they have to make such a call and not only belittle the lower league clubs, but just act as if they don't exist and have no value themselves? What works best as a competition is not the same as what works best for clubs like Arsenal. It works out best for Arsenal's football calendar. Arsenal don't speak for every other club in the competition that this impacts more on.

It already has, pretty much. Hence why now you'll never see a team in the CL who played on a Wednesday then play at 12.30pm on a Saturday.

Ah yes the EFL trophy that has non-league teams in it? You've actually just emphasised the point that everyone is making here. It's all about money isn't it? FA Cup holds no value without the top clubs in it. Those clubs wield too much power over the PL and FA. So you've got your way and you just expect other clubs to bow down to the superiority. As long as you get your way that's fine.

Gets in the way because of money elsewhere? Why not just withdraw from the competition if it gets in the way? Just because it gets in the way for one club (or 5 others) doesn't mean it gets in the way for others.

I didn't think that was right?

Villa on their way out...

They'll lose such a core group of their fans. But sadly, they'll pander to the tourist market because that's where the money is. And that's where games abroad will start to become the norm. Spain and France do their Super Cup abroad I believe. Won't be long before the Community Shield follows suit...

That's where their big money is. But I find it amusingly ironic (or infuriatingly ironic?) that the bigger clubs and their managers complain about fixture congestion but then some of them (the clubs) were twerking for this new Super League which would have given them a lot more congestion anyway. It's just another nail in the coffin for any fan that has some kind of morales and appreciates the essence of the game as opposed to chasing where the money is.

It probably is, yes. But this is the oldest cup competition in the world being totally devalued. One of the highlights is non-league clubs potentially hosting big giant clubs, or at least the chance to. We all know the motive here - protect the wants and needs of a small percentage of bigger clubs and ignore that of the majority of other clubs that are involved. Managers like Klopp, Pep, Arteta constantly moaning about fixture congestion has influenced this. I think a suitable compromise would be to do it like they do in France - if a team is drawn at home to a side 2 (or more) divisions below them, then the tie is automatically switched to a home tie for the lower league club. It keeps the 'romance' of the cup alive and it's what fans enjoy a lot about the competition.