4. Big vs Small
After much discussion, me and a friend decided to re-create the drama of the F.A Cup, by entering as 32 randomised teams in the tournament and seeing how far we could get. Imagine my displeasure, after getting Swindon Town through to the Fourth Round, in seeing the giants of English football, Manchester United, in my way. Not only were we playing at Old Trafford, but my friend, the lucky lad that he is, had been lucky enough to have received Manchester United as one of his teams. So, with 30 minutes on the clock, the score was 4-0...To Swindon Town?! That's right, League One Swindon, playing at the Theatre of Dreams, were beating one of the best teams in the world, 4-0 ,after 30 minutes of play. Now, my friend is not a bad player, and after his screams of anguish, and foul profanities had ended, we began a discussion that ended in quite a fruitful brainstorm. Surely, this kind of situation should not be happening? It is simply not realistic. My idea, or solution for this matter is quite simple: If a highly rated club is playing lower rated opposition, then there should be some sort of penalisation for the lower ranked team. Dependant on how much lower the team is ranked, the penalties could be concurrent with this. It could be something as simple as a lower amount of fitness or stamina as you would expect them to be chasing the game for prolonged periods of time. Or it could be a dip in passing, or similar thing that would have an effect on the lower ranked team. Not only would this provide realism, but the penalty would not be so drastic that a shock would not still be on the cards.