FA Cup Football

Chelsea and Manchester City clash at 3.30pm tomorrow on ITV. But that predictable match-up is preceded by a peculiar-looking first semi-final in this year’s FA Cup. Wembley represents a short trip north for Millwall, a surprisingly good FA Cup team who made the final in 2004 before succumbing to Manchester United.

But it’s a long trip south for Wigan, who’ll be relishing a break from their Premier League travails, even if their manager would presumably swap cup glory for seventeenth place in a heartbeat. Semi-finals like this are, depending on your point of view, either gloriously romantic footballing one-offs or a sign of how the FA Cup’s centrality has waned. But try making the latter case to a fan of either club today and see how far it gets you.