We were never going to win the league cup.... Blessing in disguise...

[ferring seagull]

The other issue for me is that 75% of Premier League teams field their fringe squad players and kids anyhow so the kudos that may have gone with winning the league cup say 15-20 years ago is heavily diluted now in my opinion.

But it is not is it because, come the semi final or final, the big guns will be on display and therefore not much credit to the squad members who got them there.

There is no point at all in fielding two or three (maximum) first team players in the League Cup as that shows no intent whatsoever so why even bother fielding those one or two or three against any team which, from a lower league, has nothing to lose and is entirely committed - why not just field the under 21s in entirety thereby acknowledging the fact that it is a MM competion and thereby resting all of the first team squad.

 

[lizard]

I'm glad we're out as we clearly weren't going to be taking these games seriously so may as well not have any more.
Got a feeling that may be the last time we see COG in an Albion shirt too.

 

[bn1&bn3 Albion]

As much as I'd love us to go further in the cup, look at how many games we had/have this month... 7 games in the opening month of the season is a hell of a lot, players need a rest.. I'd much rather us go into this weekend with a fit and energized squad.

 

[MrShaun15]

chelsea at home... would have been fun

 

[T soprano]

... Not really as we'd have been live on Sky playing Chelsea

 

[wakeytom]

The other issue for me is that 75% of Premier League teams field their fringe squad players and kids anyhow so the kudos that may have gone with winning the league cup say 15-20 years ago is heavily diluted now in my opinion.

Dont agree at all, my best ever experience with Sunderland was the league cup final a few years ago against city - both played strong side. I said to all and it will be on here for people to see, I was happy to be relegated that year (as it looked like at that point) given the feeling of going to a cup final for the first time in my life.

That day Toure, Nasri and Navas scored for City and Borini for us, all quality players with both teams strong.

 

[Driver8]

Quality Championship strikers aren't available for that kind of money.
A full stadium with an average spend of £200-280 per fan?

I think the receipts and Sky money would have gone some way towards paying for a striker but we obviously decided we don't need the money so played the reserves. Well done Albion.

 

[tigertim68]

As much as I'd love us to go further in the cup, look at how many games we had/have this month... 7 games in the opening month of the season is a hell of a lot, players need a rest.. I'd much rather us go into this weekend with a fit and energized squad.

Yes but after Saturday's match they have a 2 week break , so that will be 7 matches in 35 days , that's one game a week , I think they should be able to cope with that

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

Yes but after Saturday's match they have a 2 week break , so that will be 7 matches in 35 days , that's one game a week , I think they should be able to cope with that

Spot on.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

My thoughts as soon as I heard we had made 10 changes were that we would lose.
Even so, that team should have been capable of beating Walsall, but all credit to Walsall.
I can understand resting a few players, but every position bar one is not taking the fans (particularly the travelling ones), the competition or the opposition seriously.
Good luck to Walsall against Chelsea. They deserve it - the payday and the "glamour" tie.
Having said that, I do acknowledge that not having the Capital One Cup to worry about in future fixtures will "allow us to concentrate on the league", but..........

 

[Tricky Dicky]

I wanted a win partly as I fear a loss next Sat and didn't want two losses in a row. I did feel whatever side we put out ought to be enough to get over the line. As it is, a money-tie against Chelsea would have been good.

 

[fat old seagull]

I don't give a sausage that we are no longer in that competition. But it does irk me that the management aren't professional enough to delicate penalty kickers before the game in some order. So the most efficient takes the first and does so until he misses one. It appears that we have a policy of first one to grab the ball takes the kick.....

 

[Bwian]

If the club don't give a shit about this competition then they should tell us BEFORE tickets go on sale and before people take time off work midweek to travel to Walsall. Not after people make the effort to support what they hoped would be, at the very least, a competitive Albion side.

One a positive note we learned a few things from last night's defeat:

The squad is nowhere near strong enough to make us automatic promotion contenders.

1 lone striker is a total waste of time-especially if that lone striker is O'Grady.

We need both transfer windows to get close to the strength in depth we need for a playoff spot.

Ince, Holla and JFC are not good enough to be starters if we are serious about promotion.

 

[Eric Youngs Contact Lense]

The last two times we made the play-offs we got knocked out of the league cup early on by Newport and Swindon so tonight's defeat doesn't really matter.

And if my memory is ok, then the time we got promoted in 1979, I think we got dumped out early by Cambridge Utd or someone? Don't think it has any bearing on the league campaign....

 

[GT49er]

All these attempts to put a positive spin on being ignominiously dumped out of the cup by a lower league team rather remind me of the 'lickers' of last season telling us everything was fine and dandy, when patently it wasn't. Any more than it's a good thing to put out a sub-standard side and lose a match we could have won, and lose the chance to progress in the competition.
Wonder if it's the same people .................

 

[Gregory2Smith1]

we haven't no and with the current attitude highly unlikely to anytime soon

however the following clubs have

Norwich City
Birmingham
Leicester City
WBA
Swindon
Soke City
Wolves
Oxford
Luton
Sheff Wed
Blackburn
Midd'boro
Swansea

where is our ambition

 

[bn1&bn3 Albion]

Yes but after Saturday's match they have a 2 week break , so that will be 7 matches in 35 days , that's one game a week , I think they should be able to cope with that

How does having a 2 week "break" AFTER Ipswich help how they will perform at Ipswich?

 

[chaileyjem]

Cant stand the thought of Albion teams not taking cup games seriously,mugs off the 400

Given that we've played substantially different teams for cup games (normally squad players) going back years especially against lower league teams then it would have been a shock to those that attended last night if Hughton had made no changes not 10. So hard to argue that anyone is being short changed.

 

[Eric Youngs Contact Lense]

All these attempts to put a positive spin on being ignominiously dumped out of the cup by a lower league team rather remind me of the 'lickers' of last season telling us everything was fine and dandy, when patently it wasn't. Any more than it's a good thing to put out a sub-standard side and lose a match we could have won, and lose the chance to progress in the competition.
Wonder if it's the same people .................

I don't think there is too much positive spin.. Just the reality that come the end of April, very few people will have a care about who or when we went out of the competition. I would love a cup run, always have, and really enjoyed the trip to Spurs last year, but don't see it as key to momentum as others suggested. Maybe that makes me a licker.. If so I think I can live with the label!

 

[symyjym]

All these attempts to put a positive spin on being ignominiously dumped out of the cup by a lower league team rather remind me of the 'lickers' of last season telling us everything was fine and dandy, when patently it wasn't. Any more than it's a good thing to put out a sub-standard side and lose a match we could have won, and lose the chance to progress in the competition.
Wonder if it's the same people .................

It makes you wonder why Walsall didn't play a weaker team to keep their first team fit enough for Saturday. Second from top and chasing promotion you would have thought the first teamers should have been treated to a Spa in prep for their next game, not play a football game.