The men’s FA Cup fourth round gets under way on Friday, and from Middlesbrough visiting Manchester United to Boreham Wood’s game at Bournemouth on Sunday, it is full of potential upsets. In theory this should be a normal week of preparation for the top players but when you are facing a side from a lower division things can change in training. Looking back I can see how it affected teammates I played with.
Managers would often alter the side for a cup tie against a team who, on paper at least, are weaker and this could affect the squad in many ways. For a player who knows they will be given a chance to impress, it puts extra pressure on them to perform. They know it could be their one chance to prove to the manager they can be trusted more often and if they fail to seize the opportunity they might not be in the side for a long time.
Then there is the danger of regulars dropping their effort levels in training, knowing they effectively have a weekend off if they are being rested. If an individual does not operate at their usual standard on the training ground, it does not help teammates who need to be at their best at the weekend but could end up undercooked for a match that the opposition will be desperate to impress in.
Squad players give it their all in training each week to ensure the regular starters are in the best condition to win, so if they are not shown the same respect when it is their time to shine, they will not be happy. It is down to the culture at the club to ensure everyone’s attitude is right throughout the season for the good of every player.
It is the manager’s choice who is selected but they do need to get the balance right, especially when wanting to give squad players and youngsters a chance.
The key thing for all the players is to maintain the intensity required for any fixture regardless of opposition, whether they are top of the league or struggling in the fourth tier. If a squad become complacent they are only helping their opponents, who will be desperate to knock them out.
I remember losing a cup game when we did not apply ourselves throughout the buildup and therefore performed badly on the day. In those situations you can only blame yourself. We came into the tie not 100% match fit, our preparation was not at the right level and we performed poorly against a side we should have beaten.
There will be a lot of external noise about the opposition and the potential for a shock. It can make a player apprehensive when they hear about the risk of failure or the prospect of 90 minutes of being kicked up in the air by an opponent. This is another reason to ensure the buildup does not change and a player carries out their usual process to prepare for a match.
With the resources available to top clubs, they will be able to prepare fully for any opponent, so it should not be a case of not knowing about the skillset of the striker they are set to come up against. When I played it was possible to turn up to games against lesser sides and have no understanding of who we were facing.
That can be a strength as well as a weakness, because sometimes players can be fed too much information which can overwhelm them. At Arsenal, for example, we would always focus on ourselves and what we could do as a team, with the emphasis on us performing to the best of our ability to win, regardless of the opposition.
When playing away from home as the favourites in a cup tie it is important to silence the crowd early because they can make a huge difference if they are vociferous inside a tight stadium. It is imperative to start well by keeping things simple, moving the ball quickly and not reacting to any feisty tackles as opponents look to rile you.
I’ve been an underdog, too, where the mantra is very much to get into the opposition because they will not like it – so you have to expect it. The opponents need to know you have reached a higher level for a reason.
It is key to prepare for all eventualities to avoid being put off your gameplan. If you are a team that like to pass and you turn up at the ground to find the pitch is in poor condition after training all week on good surfaces, it can mean you have to adapt quickly. This is not a regular occurrence in an era when pitches are pretty good across the board but there are still underhand methods for lower-league sides to earn an advantage, such as slowing down the pitch by not watering it. The key is to know what is coming.
Make no mistake about it – if a team do not prepare and perform to their absolute maximum, it is their fault and no one else’s when they become a victim of a shock.
