Manchester City legend Tony Book knows a lot about the richest club on the planet having won more trophies than anyone else as captain and even enjoyed the role of manager for five years, but believes the tea time kick-off is killing the FA Cup.
One thing that William Hill FA Cup ambassador Book isn’t impressed with is the devaluing of the FA Cup with late kick-offs and match days occurring while the rest of the league programme is still underway. Though SKY TV and television deals have brought a lot to the beautiful game – the chopping and changing of fixtures and kick-offs is not a thing that thrills Tony.
He said: “The FA Cup has been devalued with the 5.15pm kick-off and the semi-finals at Wembley also take away some of the magic.
“Playing it on a day when other teams are playing in the league is also a mistake.
“It used to be a special occasion on its own special day at the end of the football season. It remains a great occasion, but the shine is not quite the same. If they carry on like this they will kill the special FA Cup magic.
“I think the biggest blow for the competition was playing the semi-finals at Wembley – it should be the FA Cup final alone that is played on that day. If a fan is travelling from the North West or North East then they don’t need to do that twice as it can be very expensive.”
And his views would be echoed by tens of thousands of City and Latics fans making the 400 milre round trip from their homes in the North West for the game.
Many already fear extra time could kill their chances of getting the trains they’ve booked back from the match and others feel they are being forced to stay over in expensive London hotels to ensure they miss none of the match.
At the age of 79 Tony won’t be pulling on his boots to join the Blues on the pitch, but he does note a few subtle differences between his days as manager and those of Roberto Mancini.
Looking at least a decade less than his age Tony, who held aloft the FA Cup for City in 1969, said: “When I was manager we had a physio, a kitman and a chap with a sponge, but it wasn’t quite that big a set up as the physio doubled up as the sponge man.
“I know it was a much more relaxed build up to the FA Cup final in my day. Before the 1969 final I was joint player of the year with Dave Mackay and we had a do on the Thursday night before the game and on the Friday night we went out all together for a meal.
“In those days as well as enjoying a beer between games we had to endure the weather. There were pitches frozen off, pea-souper fogs that engulfed the grounds, so even the weather was against us.
“These days the whole set up is so much more professional. The grounds are like bowling greens and we might have played better football if we’d had them.
“Now there is under-soil heating, there are full-time doctors, masseurs, special warm-up coaches and they have virtually another team of back room staff.
“My top signing as a manager was Dave Watson at £175,000 and there are players today at City who earn that in a week.
“But Dave and Asa Hartford and Brian Kidd all did well for me – it was another world back then.
“Myself and Mike Summerbee were the foreigners in the City team that lifted that FA Cup as we were from Bath and Cheltenham – the rest of the team were Northerners. Colin Bell coming from County Durham was almost another outsider.
“These days the team is like the League of Nations. Back then the players came from almost a bus ride away – Neil Young, Harry Dowd, Mike Doyle and the country cousins Glen Pardoe and Alan Oakes all came through the City system. Francis Lee was from Bolton and myself and Mike Summerbee and Colin Bell were the outsiders.
“It’s much more difficult for a young kid to make it now – they have to be exceptional. Though the youth set up at the club is better and the academy is much improved.”
To this day Tony remains the most decorated Manchester City captain of all-time and though lifting the FA Cup in 1969 was a massively proud moment he still rates the Division One Championship the season before his greatest achievement. It could be an omen for City this season as they were Premiership champions just 12 months before this weekend’s final.
Former bricklayer Book, who only got his Manchester City break aged 31 having spent a large part of his career with non-league Bath, said: “I always used to base my game on consistency, so winning the league in the season before the FA Cup was my greatest achievement as a player.’
Tony managed the club between 1974 and 1979 and saw them just one point off being Division One champions, but he also became the first person to win the League Cup as both player and manager when Manchester City landed the trophy in 1976.
The first notable victory of Book’s management was a 1–0 Manchester derby win, best known for the back-heel scored by ex-Old Trafford idol Denis Law that saw Manchester United relegated.
He said: “I’ll never forget that game as I was up celebrating and Denis was beside himself.”
Book is retired, but remains Honorary President of Manchester City and Life President of the Manchester City Official Supporters Club and was inducted into Manchester City’s Hall of Fame in January 2004.
His views on the today’s big game are true Blue and Book said: “If we are on our day we will win 3-1.
“But Wigan played ever so well in the League. I have a lot of respect for Wigan and for the chairman Dave Whelan and the board of directors there.
“I admire the way they have treated their manager – they have backed him all the way. And I would love to see them stay up.”
(Picture: Nigel Bennett)