Revive cup of cheers

8:26am Tuesday 8th January 2008

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TOP of my New Year wish-list for 2008 was an end to the devaluation of the FA Cup.

That might have to wait until 2009 after the attitudes of some of the bigger and not-so-bigger clubs during several third round ties at the weekend.

There were still some moments of magic, however, in what used to be the highlight of the football calendar and, for me, they were provided by the non-League teams.

It was great to see the side that knocked York City out - Havant and Waterlooville - get a late equaliser at Swansea and force a replay, while the dance the Chasetown players did after losing 3-1 to Cardiff was also wonderful.

They were just proud of what they had achieved and I don't think that would happen in any other competition in the world.

On the downside, I could not understand the comments of Reading striker Dave Kitson, saying he was not bothered about the competition. I'm sure his opinion is not one that would be shared by Reading fans.

Maybe one way of restoring the Cup's prestige would be giving the winners the fourth Champions League place, although that sparks another debate as I believe there should only be one team from each country - funnily enough the champions - in that competition.

It's incredible that teams are fielding weakened sides in the FA Cup to increase their chances of finishing fourth bottom in the Premier League. Championship Crystal Palace even rested players because they are a club trying to get into the Premier League.

In my opinion, the clubs are short-changing the fans with such attitudes because surely they want their team to go as far as possible in the FA Cup.

In the past, most would have accepted being relegated if it meant reaching the FA Cup final and many probably still would but all the people that run clubs now are thinking about money, not winning trophies.

My other forlorn hope for 2008 would be to create a more even playing field in the Premier League, by abolishing the transfer window and dictating that each club can only spend the same amount on signing new players.

I know it will never happen but if we are hoping to improve the game that would go a long way to revealing who really are the country's best managers and coaches.

There's talk of Dimitar Berbatov going to Manchester United for £30million now.

If that happens, you have got to ask how the likes of Spurs are ever going to close the gap at the top and make the game a bit more interesting in this country.

In terms of 2008 predictions, I think Manchester United will win the Premier League again and can also see them lifting the FA Cup and reaching the Champions League final.

That's not to say I'm a Man U fan because I'm not and although Cristiano Ronaldo is a wonderful modern-day football I'm not a fan of what he stands for.

But I feel they've just got the edge over Arsenal and that Chelsea and Liverpool aren't good enough to mount a challenge.

Where Manchester United might fall short is in attack where they haven't really got an out-and-out striker.

I can never understand why Alex Ferguson sold Ruud Van Nistelrooy because Louis Saha has never really looked convincing, while Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney both like to receive the ball in deeper positions.

As for Euro 2008, I haven't really given that much thought yet and I'm not really interested.

What I would love to see, though, is the current improvement in fortunes at York City carrying on in the New Year.

The atmosphere has changed there in recent weeks and, as a former player, I know that if the fans come out in their numbers and create a rocking KitKat Crescent, there's still plenty to play for during the second half of the season.