Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer call for major FA Cup rule change after Man Utd vs Fulham
Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer call for major FA Cup rule change after Man Utd vs Fulham
Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer have called for a major rule change following the weekend’s FA Cup fifth round fixtures. Eight teams made it through to the quarter-finals of the oldest domestic cup in world football, and there was no shortage of controversies across the clashes.
Jean-Philippe Mateta required upwards of 20 stitches to his ear following a gruesome clash with Millwall goalkeeper Liam Roberts, while there were more VAR-related woes as issues with semi-automated offsides led to a major delay in Bournemouth’s match against Wolves. However, following Manchester United’s shock elimination to Fulham, Shearer and Lineker have made their thoughts clear on one rule that has to go.
Lineker and Shearer Call For Extra-Time to Be Scrapped
The ex-England internationals say removing the rule will protect players
Speaking on the latest edition of the Rest is Football podcast, Lineker and Shearer both expressed their desire to see extra-time removed from the FA Cup. In total, four of the fifth-round ties saw an additional 30 minutes played as teams couldn’t be separated. However, only in Brighton’s win over Newcastle was a goal scored in this period, with the other three games being decided on penalties.
As a result, the pundits claim it would be better viewing to watch sides go straight to the shootout, while pointing out how it would benefit the players, who already deal with a packed schedule, as Lineker stated:
“We’ve argued many times, just get rid of extra-time. Just go to penalties. It makes so much sense. Particularly with the amount of football teams are playing now, the amount of injuries we’re getting.
“Just play 90 minutes, then settle it on penalties. Because once it goes to extra-time, the vast majority of us are thinking, particularly when it’s as bad as it was last night, you’re just thinking ‘come on, penalty shootout, a bit of excitement’.”
Shearer followed up on this with similar sentiments, saying: “Straight to penalties. I’m all for that.”
Lineker also argued that extra-time benefits the stronger teams, a suggestion that was made after Tamworth were knocked out by Tottenham in the third round as the Premier League side scored three times in the extra thirty minutes. These claims have led to the FA considering its removal in the future.
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