The FA Cup has been operational for almost 150 years now, making it the oldest national football competition in the world. Throughout the years of the competition, there have been plenty of stellar matches that have taken place. Since 2015, it has been known as The Emirates FA Cup, due to its sponsor, and a concurrent women’s tournament is also held every year now, too.
When it’s all said and done though, the FA Cup competition has witnessed some highly thrilling matches that top all others. That’s precisely what we’re here to take a look at – three of the tournament’s greatest games in history.
Tottenham Hotspur Vs. Leeds United (4th Round FA Cup, 2010)
This particular match may have ended in a 2-2 outcome, but it was attended by 35,750 people at White Hart Lane in London and turned out to be one of the highlights of the year. Leeds had previously knocked Manchester United out of the competition in the Third Round, and even though the northern side were 41 places below Spurs in league terms, they brought the fight. A lot of the praise for this could be laid at the feet of Jermaine Beckford, one of the country’s greatest strikers.
Tottenham outmatched Leeds in the first half, pretty much running them ragged throughout. The Betway online sports betting site experienced a huge number of wagers on Spurs being the victors, and there is little wonder. Not only do newer players get to claim the Betway bonus (thereby enabling more bets to be placed), but with such gameplay, it seemed certain that Spurs would finish as the winners. Of course, obtaining a bonus from an online sportsbook to bolster your betting capabilities isn’t enough to guarantee the outcome of a match, as Leeds pulled it back with goals in the 52nd and 96th minutes, thanks to Beckford.
Sheffield Wednesday Vs. Sheffield United (FA Cup Semi-Final, 1993)
It was already thrilling enough to see both of Sheffield’s major clubs go on their own respective FA Cup runs in 1993, but when they were drawn to face each other in the Semi-Final, fans exploded with excitement. Ticket sales for the match were so high that the FA had to change the venue from Elland Road to Wembley, and spectators were not disappointed with what took place on the pitch. After just two minutes of gameplay, Chris Waddle scored a goal for Wednesday, although Alan Cork brought it back for United at the 44-minute mark. Inevitably, it went to extra time and this saw the Owls‘ striker Mark Bright knock the ball into the net at the 108-minute mark to secure Wednesday the victory.
Coventry City Vs. Tottenham Hotspur (FA Cup Final, 1987)
With around 96,000 fans in attendance at Wembley Stadium, Coventry City brought the fight to the Spurs. BBC commentator John Motson even went on record as saying that it was “the finest Cup Final I’ve had the pleasure of commentating on”, and it was this sort of sentiment that many fans echoed around the world. From start to finish, it was a high-energy affair. Tottenham went into the lead on two separate occasions, thanks to the roster of international players that it had. Coventry may not have had such a diverse team on the pitch, but it managed to make things even stevens twice, and when Gary Mabbutt ended up scoring an own-goal in the 5th minute of extra time, Coventry held on to secure the victory.
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