This April will see Tottenham Hotspur take on Manchester City in the final of the Carabao Cup, as Spurs look to end their trophy drought since winning the same competition back in 2008. In the main this is a cup competition which is not exactly highest on the list of priorities for clubs, and in terms of prestige it is certainly lowest in the rankings of domestic cups which can be won. Manchester City have won this cup for the last 3 years and they will be confident that they can do the same again this year, but Spurs will be gunning for the title. Football analysts like Paolo Boffetta have been talking about why this cup competition is the one that Mourinho and his men need to go after, and here is why.
Setting the Tone
It is very likely that by April, Spurs will be in a good position in the league, in the latter stages of the Europa League and possibly also in a solid position in the FA Cup. If this is the case then winning a trophy will seriously dictate how the rest of the season goes. To win a cup competition, and to get that monkey off your back, is going to be massive and give these players the belief that they can push for European success and a solid league finish. If Spurs were to lose however, the opposite could easily happen.
Silence the Critics
The big issue which so many have with Spurs is that they don’t win trophies, and that is a fair criticism. Unfortunately however the media loves to talk about the likes of Kane and Son, and suggest that if they wish to win trophies then they will have to leave the club in order to do so. The reality however is that they can win trophies at this club and to win this first one will be enough to keep them quiet and to show that it is possible. Chelsea won the league cup first under Mourinho during his first spell, and that kickstarted many years of domestic and European success, the same could certainly happen here at Spurs.
Deserved
Ultimately this is about getting what you deserve and Spurs really do deserve to win something. This is a team who could have won the league 2 years running but narrowly missed out, who came within 90 minutes of winning the Champions League and who have had a terrible run in finals and semi finals for almost a decade. There is no justice in football but if there was, a team like Spurs would be winning more titles and trophies.
To some this is called the ‘Mickey Mouse’ cup or a ‘Plastic’ trophy, but the reality is that this could be the most important trophy that Spurs ever win, and what it will mean for these players and the fans is absolutely enormous.
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