The FA Cup replay conundrum

As football becomes more and more dominated by money, old traditions are slowly fading into the shadows, and back on the agenda are FA cup replays. With the 5th round replay scrapped back in 2018 the subject is now around the 3rd and 4th round replay.

With Premier League managers bemoaning the fixture list even with larger squad sizes than their lower league counterparts it appears that FA Cup replays are on the hit list for the like of Klopp. Having a World Cup played during a season certainly hasn’t helped matters as did the postponed fixtures for the Queen’s death, so is getting rid of replays all together a good idea? Certainly if you ask the majority of Premier League teams it is, but what about the lower league clubs who rely on the money generated from a good cup run, and perhaps a big tie against one of the big boys? What solution can be made to accommodate both ends of the footballing scale?

We for one would like to see replays remain but at the discretion of the clubs directly involved. There has been talks on looking at a case by case basis, but who gets to decide? We would much rather see the two teams drawn together have final say. Stick with us here.

For example if Liverpool drew Southampton but both sides didn’t want a replay they would have a 48hr deadline from when the draw is made to inform the FA of whether they will be playing the tie with or without a replay. For a replay to be scrapped both teams would need to agree. If there was a lower league team involved they would be able to veto the request thus the tie will continue with a replay if necessary, giving the lower league clubs the opportunity to still play for a replay. But if Premier League teams are drawn together much like Liverpool vs Wolves, they could both have agreed from the outset for it to be a one off tie conclusion, thus eliminating the replay.

This obviously wont satisfy all concerned games but it at least provides clubs the option in a time sensitive manner to opt for a one game tie to be concluded on the day.

There is also the case that if a Premier League team plays a lower league side with a replay still on the table, they could always play a stronger line up and finish the round off in one game rather than going to a replay, just a thought.