Should United be winning the FA Cup or focusing on the league?

By @UtdNiamh, published on 24/09/21

The last time MUFC won the fa cup was under Dutchman Louis Van Gaal in 2016, with Jesse Lingard scoring a dramatic late winner against Crystal Palace at Wembley. Before that, we won in 2004, which most of us younger fans wouldn't remember. When we won it in 2016, I felt happy but also sad because we had missed out on the Champions League that season and felt the FA cup couldn't cover up the cracks from that season (those 0-0 draws at old Trafford made me want to revise) and I was right, Louis was sacked shortly after that result. The FA cup is nice to win but not an important trophy unless you are Arsenal. In this article, I will be looking at whether United should go all out to win it or completely ignore it and focus on the league. I will also look at how vital winning a trophy is with the current squad for Ole after the disappointment against West Ham in the Carabao Cup.

Could winning the FA cup kickstart the trophies at United

Sometimes, a manager needs one trophy to kick start the years of success, which could be the FA cup for Ole and the boys. This was the case in 1990 when Sir Alex Ferguson was in the job for three years and still hadn't won a trophy, the wording was different, but some fans still wanted Fergie out. The final of the FA cup that year was Fergie's last chance. A Lee Martin winner against Crystal Palace meant that Ferguson stayed and went on to win 38 more trophies at the club, which he spent another 23 years at. Now Ole isn't Fergie, but he has his similarities with the three years without a trophy, and some fans are impatient with the management. On the flip side, it isn't 1990 anymore, and the FA cup wasn't enough to save LVG's job, so times have changed, and priorities of boards and fans have changed.

Easier to get the final

Debatably, it is easier to get to the final of the FA cup than to play 38 games a season. In 2016, united played:

• Sheffield United

• Derby County

• Shrewsbury

• West Ham

• West Ham (replayed)

• Everton

• Crystal Palace

United didn't once meet any of the traditional top 6 in the run, and they only met two premier league teams during the run to the final. This is just luck as in other years, and United have met top 6 teams earlier on and been knocked out by so-called smaller teams. Sometimes you need luck in cups, and we haven't had that much chance in the last few years, unlike our inner-city rivals.

The Champions League and Premier League are more important.

Yes, the FA cup is a historically significant trophy, but it doesn't attract players and money, which is what united are about both on the pitch and in the board room. If you win the premier league, you are the attention of everyone, and big players want to join your side and same with the Champions League. This is why teams like Arsenal take the FA cup seriously because they know that they have no real chance of the other two mentioned trophies. But want to paper over the cracks of a bad league season, which in my opinion, happened at united in 2016 when the club won the FA Cup but fell short in the league.

Potentially burning players out.

If United go for the FA Cup and the Premier League, they risk burning the squad out to get to the final. At a certain point, first-team players need to play and sometimes that could lead to injury or burnout, which could affect the other competitions the club would be competing in. I would rather play the second team in the cup and rest the stars for the final rather than potentially losing a star player because of an injury against a worse side.

If we aren't in the title race (which we should be), then focus more on the FA cup, but it shouldn't be something that the club should prioritise over the Prem or Champions League. On the other hand, we need a trophy, and the FA cup would be an excellent way to get one and take the pressure of Ole and the squad. This season needs a trophy, be it the FA Cup or the league, or Ole is under severe pressure.

Niamh Maguire