CUP KING CARLO
Lifting trophy as good as title win says Toffees boss
CARLO ANCELOTTI believes in the “beauty” of the FA Cup and insists winning it ranks alongside the Premier League in terms of prestige.
For the Everton manager that means lifting the trophy is one of the most difficult things to achieve in European football, because no other cup competition comes close to matching it across the continent.
Ancelotti should know. He has won trophies in Italy, Spain, Germany, France and England, having also lifted the FA Cup with Chelsea in 2010.
“The players know the difficulties and the beauty of this competition, maybe better than me,” he said.
“I think that as a domestic competition the FA Cup is the most important, compared to the other countries.
“In Italy the Italian Cup is not so important. Here to win the FA Cup is like to win the Premier League. So that makes it very difficult to win.We know how difficult it is but we are working hard on this.”
Ancelotti will resist the temptation to use the competition as a chance to rest players, insisting he is acutely aware of how much a trophy would mean to Everton fans. He promised supporters his side have a real desire
to deliver
26 years.
He said: “I know how much Evertonians want to win trophies. What I can say for sure is we are doing everything to try to have trophies here as soon as possible.
“These players have a great desire to be competitive, to fight for the top, to play to try to win cups. They are really young and they have the desire to have a fantastic career.”
Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham stand in the way of Everton and a first quarter-final in five years, and Ancelotti believes it is a tough start to an 11-day period that will be “crucial” to their season.
They also face Manchester City and Liverpool in the Premier League in the upcoming games and he said: “It is a crucial moment for everyone and an important period of the season. Tottenham is still a fantastic team. I think that Mourinho’s team are always in balance, they are doing a good job defensively and offensively.”
the
club’s
first
trophy in
BURNLEY suffered double embarrassment as they were dumped out of the FA Cup by Bournemouth.
Home faces were the same colour as their claret shirts when the Cherries pointed out Sean Dyche had named the suspended Erik Pieters in his team – and the player was hastily replaced.
Burnley did not fare any better later as Dyche’s weakened side deservedly lost, making it two wins out of two for Bournemouth caretaker boss Jonathan Woodgate.
Dyche tried to downplay the Pieters blunder and felt it might have been a different result if Jay Rodriguez had not missed a great chance at 1-0.
“It was just a club administrative error,” said the Burnley manager.
“We have people who keep an eye on that situation and the rules have changed this year with bookings in the FA Cup.
“Bournemouth flagged it up and we jumped on it straight away.
“We had to make a lot of changes but there was no lack of effort or desire.They were two soft goals and we missed a glorious chance – if Jay had put that away the game would have changed.”
Bournemouth press officer Anthony Marshall spotted the Pieters error and Woodgate said: “Fair play to our staff, Anthony told Burnley.
“We all want a fair game and it was good sportsmanship.”
Bournemouth are through to the quarter-finals for the first time since 1957 – when they were in the old Division Three South and lost 2-1 to Manchester United’s Busby Babes at Dean Court.
“We put out a strong team to win the game, no doubt about it,” saidWoodgate. “It’s only the second time in Bournemouth’s history they have reached quarter-finals, so it’s good.”
Dyche had to draft in Anthony Glennon after the Pieters blunder. He was one of eight Burnley changes compared to Woodgate’s six, and the hosts were poor.
Championship side Bournemouth deservedly opened the scoring through a fine passing move on 21 minutes.
Philip Billing and Junior Stanislas combined before David Brooks found the the overlapping Jack Stacey on the left. He centred for Sam Surridge, who sidefooted home from close range.
The best Burnley could muster was when Dale Stephens wastefully shot over and he then nearly headed into his own net, only for Bailey Peacock-Farrell to make a fine save.
Burnley improved and Asmir Begovic saved a Dwight McNeil shot before Rodriguez somehow skied his chance from close range. Stanislas’ penalty sealed victory after Kevin Long fouled Surridge.
Goals:
NOT for the first time this season it took the introduction of quality from the home bench to ignite a contest on a freezing night at OldTrafford.
In the previous round of the FA Cup it was Bruno Fernandes who turned things around against Liverpool, last night it was Scott
McTominay’s turn, with his clean strike in the opening period of extra-time seeing off a doggedWest Ham side.
It was due reward for the better team but it was a hard watch throughout.
McTominay was thrown on with Fernandes to liven up a loose performance with 17 minutes of normal time to go.
And while it was Fernandes who moved United through the gears it was the Scot, with a 15-yard strike, who put United in Thursday’s quarterfinal draw for a seventh successive campaign. Boss Ole
Gunnar Solskjaer made six changes from the side stung late by Everton on Saturday.
Not surprisingly given his mistakes and his infrequent appearances in this competition, David De Gea made way for Dean Henderson while McTominay, Edinson Cavani, Fernandes and Luke Shaw started on a freezing bench.
West Ham were less depleted although they had to do without Michail Antonio. They suffered another blow when Angelo Ogbonna limped off after 13 minutes. There was no malice in the challenge from Anthony Martial, the striker inadvertantly catching the defender’s ankle as he pounced on a through ball.
United needed no invitation to pin back the Hammers, who did well to keep throwing bodies on the line to block.
The hosts nearly took the lead just before the half-hour, Victor Lindelof’s header being athletically turned around the post by Lukasz Fabianski. But for all their possession United managed just one shot at goal in the opening period.
It was poor stuff but with the second-half starting in a snowstorm, conditions had a galvanising effect.
Marcus
Rashford had a chance to put United ahead after a cross from the byline, only for Fabianski to save his sevenyard effort. That jolted West Ham, with Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek gaining a grip in midfield.
A mistake from Lindelof might have been punished had Pablo Fornals found runners either side when West Ham broke.
Aaron WanBissaka’s skewed clearance then almost caught out Henderson, the keeper tipping it over his bar. Craig Dawson nearly nicked it for the Hammers, his header in the 90th minute being cleared byWan-Bissaka.
And seven minutes into extra-time a surging United move was rewarded with McTominay’s winner.
UNITED (4-2-3-1): Henderson 5; Wan-BIssaka 6 (Shaw 91), Lindelof 6, Maguire 6, Telles 6 (Williams 91); Fred 6, Matic 6 (McTominay 73, 7); Greenwood 7 (Cavani 86), Van de Beek 6 (Fernandes 73), Rashford 7; Martial 5. Goal: McTominay 97
WEST HAM (4-2-3-1): Fabianski 8; Coufal 7, Dawson 6, Ogbonna (Diop 16, 5, Fredericks 46, 6), Cresswell 6; Noble 6, Rice 7; Soucek 7, Fornals 6 (Benrahma 89), Bowen 5 (Johnson 46, 7); Yarmolenko 5 (Odubeko 54, 5, Lanzini 112).