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FA Cup HOT or NOT: Lincoln restore magic of the Cup, New Den's message of defiance, Barton the villain again

What’s sexy, and what isn’t sexy, in football this week…

HOT

Magic (of the Cup)
It has been undeniably sad to see the FA Cup repeatedly whipped by the Premier League in the coolness stakes over the past couple of decades and gradually cowed into accepting its status as the poorer, scruffier domestic football sibling that nobody cares about as much. So it’s always nice to be reminded of the Cup’s capacity for providing superlative moments of drama and passion that the league never could match, no matter how much TV money gets thrown at it. Lincoln’s last-minute winner at Burnley was one of those moments – Sean Raggett carving his name into the history books by scoring with the Imps’ only shot on target against in-form top flight opponents. But what made the shock of Turf Moor most special was witnessing the sheer delirium of 3,000 long-suffering fans who had just watched side their team do something nobody else had done for more than 100 years.

The New Den
Similar scenes of fan jubilation will live longest in the memory from Millwall’s equally dramatic 1-0 win against Leicester. The Lions’ ground retains an intimidating aura even when it’s half empty, which it almost always is, but a second string Foxes XI felt the full force of this famous old new stadium as a rare sell-out crowd roared the League One side to victory despite playing almost half the match with 10 men. At a time when the New Den’s future is under threat from property developers who wants to knock it down and build houses on it, this was an emphatic and effective message of defiance from the south-east Londoners who call it home. And as for the post-match pitch invasion that supposedly “turned things sour”, FA Cup shocks are SUPPOSED to be accompanied by pitch invasions.

Cesc Fabregas
Slowly but surely, the Chelsea midfielder has worked his way back into the 2016/17 season from a position of apparent oblivion. His man-of-the-match display in Chelsea’s hard-fought 2-0 win at Wolves was the latest reminder of his determination to continue to play a part in the Blues’ future, this season and beyond, and he is playing in a manner that makes him impossible to ignore. While Antonio Conte is currently getting on very nicely with his defensive-minded midfield duo of N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic, Fabregas offers something different and could yet play a major role in the title and FA Cup run-in.

NOT

Joey Barton
One thing you can say for the Burnley midfielder is that no one is too big or too small for him to take on, and his latest nemesis is among his smallest (in reputation) and also biggest (in physical bulk). Barton’s bizarre dive in an apparent attempt to get Lincoln centre-forward Matt Rhead sent off (moments after the Premier League player appeared to have dug his studs into his non-league opponent’s foot) gained him some predictable criticism on social media, and he responded in equally predictable fashion – by Instagramming a poignant quote from 13th-century Persian poet Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi that no one understood. And all we wanted to do was enjoy one of the greatest FA Cup shocks of all-time. Silly.

Claudio Ranieri
The Italian’s exact-opposite-season-of-the-season-he-had-last-season season continues, as his champions were humbled by League One opponents playing with a one-man disadvantage. Ranieri’s team selection against Millwall was certainly a contributing factor, with every first-team regular rested against the Lions, leaving the impression that the Leicester boss wasn’t too bothered whether he lost or not. Perhaps understandable given the Foxes’ priorities in the league and Champions League, but disappointing nonetheless for Leicester fans who have seen their side reach the quarter-final of the FA Cup just three times in 35 years.

Arsene Wenger
True, Arsenal haven’t actually played yet this FA Cup weekend, but there is not really any way their manager can come out of it looking hot. If the unthinkable (although actually slightly more thinkable than normal) happens and the Gunners lose, then that would obviously be bad, as it would if they draw. But even if they win – even if it’s 21-0 and Francis Coquelin scores 14 goals – it will do nothing to lessen the intensity of the questions about Wenger’s future. In fact, it will increase the intensity, purely because Arsenal are playing football. In short, it will be impossible for the Frenchman to have any fun on Monday night.

@darlingkevin