It’s time once again to round up what football fans in England thought about this weekend’s football action. This weekend, it was time for the FA cup quarter finals!
Middlesbrough v Chelsea
Middlesbrough have had a season to remember in the FA Cup this year. Not only were they able to down Manchester United at Old Trafford in the fourth round, but they also saw off Tottenham Hotspur when they returned to the Riverside in round 5. However, it was the end of the road for Boro as the European champions Chelsea proved too much for the North East club. A 2-0 victory was witnessed by a sparse number of Chelsea fans as the Premier League side continue to feel the effects of the UK government sanctions on owner Roman Abramovich.
Middlesbrough fans were keen to highlight how well their team had done in this season’s cup particularly against higher placed opposition. The Boro Breakdown Podcast tweeted, ‘There are several words that you could use to sum up Boro’s FA Cup run but one speaks louder than most: 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱’. It would seem that the fans are certainly not disheartened by missing out on the opportunity to play at Wembley feeling that their players made the fans proud of their team once again.
In the case of Chelsea, an FA cup semi final to look forward to is a welcome distraction from their on going off the pitch issues. Not only was this a positive step, but also their progression into the last 8 of the Champions League was a massive achievement given the circumstances. Angelo Mangiante was keen to highlight the spirit of this team in these testing times.
‘Congratulations Chelsea. In one of the most difficult moments in the club’s history, the players demonstrate courage and a winning mentality. A Club that will continue to win with any owner. The owners change, but the Club remains. Proud of you’.
Pride, it would seem, is the overwhelming emotion from the fans of both clubs.
Everton v Crystal Palace
When a team is having a tough season in the league the FA cup can often supply an incredible amount of escapism. The magic of the cup is most certainly real and for the fans of Everton, they were hoping that they could distract themselves from the Premier League relegation battle by being able to book their tickets to Wembley. However, Crystal Palace had other ideas and in all honesty outclassed the Merseyside outfit in every area of the pitch to run out 4-0 winners at Selhurst Park.
Everton fans are seemingly beyond angry at the way their season has panned out. This was summed up by a tweet from Everton fan Jonathan McAllister who simply tweeted, ‘No Everton for two weeks’ alongside an emoji with love hearts for eyes! Humour seems to be the way forward for the frustrated Evertonians.
Palace fans on the other hand were delighted with their teams showing, giving them the chance to walk down Wembley Way once again. They did however, take exception to Everton manager Frank Lampard’s comments following the game where he seemed to suggest that the South London side were average at best. Kim the Palace fan tweeted, ‘“Average” is breaking your hand beating Newcastle, Frank. AND PALACE ON THEIR WAY TO WEMBLEY’.
Social media was filled with comments like this with Palace fans slamming the comments of Lampard following the encounter. Above all though, fans are looking forward now to that mouth watering semi final against Chelsea next month.