The upcoming Bristol Street Motors Trophy tie between Manchester City’s U21s and Lincoln City has been rescheduled for Tuesday, 12 November, with a 7pm kick-off.
This has surprised me, because I’d missed that it was originally set for 24 September. However, it was, and now the fixture has been postponed at the request of the Premier League giants. I find this baffling and frustrating in equal measure. Firstly, when they played Chesterfield, their squad numbers ranged from 51 to 95 – that’s hardly a shortage of players. Given that the Premier League champions have an EFL Cup match that evening, I think it’s safe to assume that clash is the reason behind the postponement.
That raises another pertinent point: if the EFL agrees to the change, it means they surely value the League Cup over the Trophy, which is understandable. However, it also shows they don’t really value either at all, as they’re agreeing to move a fixture that should feature Under 21s for one that shouldn’t. They’re still happy for Man City to play kids in the League Cup, at the expense of a game that Man City (and others) have pushed for in order to feature their kids. It’s laughable, if you really care, which I don’t.
It’s hard to ignore the frustration that inevitably comes with such a rescheduling for those who care about the competition. Any Imps fans planning their trips to the game will now have to adjust their calendars to accommodate the new date. I know there will be some, but not hundreds. Postponements like this, especially at the request of the Premier League side, can feel like a disregard for lower-league clubs and their supporters, especially when the opposition are ‘only’ the Under 21s.
The delay could be beneficial for the Imps, as it’s a Tuesday without a fixture, so we can focus the whole week on Cambridge United, a game we could break a record in. However, we’re just kicking the can further down the line. At some point, we’re going to have to play Man City.
If I’m brutally honest, I really don’t care. The game will be played at some point, many of the people criticising it wouldn’t go anyway, and neither would I. The ‘fringe’ players will get minutes, whether this week or in November, so it’s all academic.
There’s an argument for it being an example of Premier League greed. People will obviously cite that, but haters of the competition are going to hate. I accept it for what it is, and while it’s not ideal, the fact we routinely play academies in pre-season now does, to some extent, normalise it. I don’t rate the matches, I don’t go (unless commentating, as I did for the Arsenal friendly), but I see the value, to a degree.
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