FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Carabao Cup - Semi Final - First Leg - Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - January 8, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou celebrates after the match REUTERS/Dylan Martinez/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) - Ange Postecoglou is a huge fan of the FA Cup and its potential for shocks but will hope his Tottenham Hotspur side can avoid becoming the fall guys in what would be the biggest story of the third round when they travel to fifth-tier Tamworth on Sunday.
Australian Postecoglou will rotate his injury-stretched squad at the Lamb Ground with several youngsters likely to get a chance to impress but insists there is no chance his side will fall into the trap of under-estimating their opponents.
While the world's oldest domestic Cup competition has lost some of its lustre according to some, traditionalist Postecoglou says it remains a special competition.
"I still think it's a really important competition. It includes pretty much every tier of football and there's always great story lines within it," he told reporters on Friday.
"There have been already such stories in the early rounds of the cup and we are meeting a side that has come through the early rounds. I still think Cup Final day is a marquee day on the global football calendar.
"I feel like it's a really important tournament that maintains the right kind of traditions. Certainly in my eyes, I see it as a very important part of the calendar."
The FA Cup begins with qualifying rounds in August when amateur sides from the lowest rungs of the English soccer ladder set out in the search for glory and a chance to measure themselves against Premier League household names.
Tamworth entered the competition at the fourth qualifying round stage and beat Macclesfield. They then got past former FA Cup winners Huddersfield in the first round proper and set up a prized third-round clash at home to Tottenham by beating local rivals Burton Albion on penalties.
They are 16th in the National League with the main priority avoiding relegation, but on Sunday they will put that aside to try to cause a huge upset.
"There's always challenges out there. I'm sure Tamworth will think it's a great opportunity for them and we have to be ready for that," Postecoglou, whose first FA Cup campaign with Tottenham ended in a fourth-round defeat by Manchester City last season, said.
"(My players) will go there and respect the fact that Tamworth are going to build it up for the biggest game of their lives probably.
"I'm sure they'll do their best to create an atmosphere where they will be proud of their ground and their facility."
England midfielder James Maddison is likely to lead a youthful Tottenham side on Sunday with 17-year-old forward Mikey Moore likely to play a role after recovering from injury.
"It's good getting Mikey back," Postecoglou, whose side are also in the League Cup semi-finals, said.
"We will try to get him some game time during the weekend but aside from that, it will be a team that we think will get us through to the next round."
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Toby Davis)
