Sutton players have chance of a lifetime Says Les Ferdinand
success of Vardy and the others. Many bigger clubs are under pressure from fans to make expensive signings.
“If he doesn’t cost millions, then they can be unhappy. They expect big names.
“But if you look at how well those players have done, who have come through the non-League football, then that could be changing. That is why the match for Sutton is such a great showpiece for their players. It is such a great chance for them, especially as it is live on TV.
“They will put their best foot forward – individually and as a team. When I was in their position, whenever I had the chance to play against a League team, it just made y you that much more motivated. You w wanted to catch someone’s eye, w who could give you a chance.”
Ferdinand revealed that Rangers now monitor the non-League scene w with more scrutiny than in previous y years.
He added: “You hear about this striker or that defender and you have him watched – the players with ability are there.”
Sutton do not have the most reassuring of memories when it comes to facing Leeds. Back in 1970, Leeds – under Don Revie and with a team of internationals – won 6-0, with Allan Clarke scoring four.
Garry Monk’s 2017 charges may be on a decent run of form in the Championship of late, but they are unlike the force of old.
The perfect chance for the National League outfit to make headlines – and, for one, the chance to make a name for himself. LIAM BRIDCUTT has vowed that Leeds will not allow a fixture pile-up to wreck their finest season since falling out of the Premier League 13 years ago.
Boss Garry Monk’s high-fliers are powering towards a top-flight return, and went third in the Championship on the back of last Wednesday’s 2-0 win over crisis club Nottingham Forest.
And they are putting together a potentially lucrative FA Cup run which today takes them on a fourthround trip to Sutton Utd – the little non-League outfit they walloped 6-0 at the same stage of the competition 47 years ago. It’s the third in a gruelling run of five games in the space of 16 days for Monk’s men – and a possible banana skin for the revitalised Yorkshire giants.
But skipper Bridcutt, 27, insists it is a challenge they can handle – both mentally and physically.
The midfielder, who sealed a £1.5million switch to Elland Road from Sunderland last August after a loan spell, said: ”Sure, it’s a tough schedule, but we will deal with it because we’re not going to throw away all the hard work we’ve put in already this season. We have pressure on us all the time because we are a big club with high expectations. We are a scalp because of that, and the higher we sit up the table the harder the games get.
“When you are at the top of the league, teams always want to beat you that little bit more. They try that little bit harder, but we have adapted pretty well so far and we look forward to continue being tested.
“This is why you become a footballer. You want to be at the top of your game.
“We kicked off this sequence with a defeat at Barnsley last weekend. That was a huge disappointment, but we put it right by beating Forest four days later.
“Now it’s Sutton in the Cup, before we go into really important league games against Blackburn and Huddersfield.
“But these are the games we need to be winning if we are to get a Cup run going and be at the top of the table at the end of the season.”
Monk will take no liberties against the plucky part-timers, who will be backed by 5,000 fans.
He warned: ”Ties like this are potentially very difficult and we have got to make sure we are fully focused.”