AHEAD of tomorrow's FA Cup clash between Newport County AFC and Premier League giants Manchester City, one Exiles fan has penned a letter to the Citizens' boss Pep Guardiola.
Long-standing County fan Andy Bartlett, a civil servant from Newport, penned the letter to the City boss to mark the occasion.
"It started out as a comparison between the clubs' fans," he said. "Then I thought that this would be a nice thing to do.
"I have family living in Barcelona, Pep’s home town, and have long been a huge admirer of the style of football Pep encourages all his teams to play.
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"I thought this would grab people's attention more than just a fact-based comparison.
"I got to thinking what was it that made this game so special.
"There's such a marked contrast between their players and ours. It's a unique thing that the FA Cup brings."
Here is Mr Bartlett's letter in full:
Dear Pep,
This afternoon you and I will share the privilege of witnessing an incredibly precious, irrational occasion that is unique in sport. It will play out on a boggy, bumpy patch of ground surrounded by a decaying set of buildings next to an ugly river of mud. On every other day, of every other season, the footballing worlds we occupy could not be further apart.
Yours is filled with superstar players paid eyewatering salaries bank-rolled by rich investors and lucrative TV deals. Ours is one of unrecognisable journeymen earning factory salaries paid for by a supporter-owned trust.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. Picture: Martin Rickett/PA Wire.
But this afternoon, however briefly, those worlds will collide and the decaying buildings will become a cauldron of passion, noise and dreams.
For today is Saturday, February 16, this is the Fifth Round of the FA Cup and you are bringing the Premier League Champions Manchester City to Rodney Parade to play Newport County of League Two.
Your players will never have experienced anything quite like what they are about to walk into. The rugby-scarred pitch, the cramped dressing rooms and the crowd breathing down their necks.
Most likely they will hate every minute. But everything I know about you tells me you will love it. You will get the passion, the intensity and the love we have for our club. I honestly hope you do.
We will certainly never forget today whatever the result.
You are rightly viewed by many as the King of football. Your teams play a beautiful, majestic game. But this is NP19. This is Flynney’s patch. And he is the only one who will reign on this Parade. Whatever the result.
When the game ends our worlds will once again diverge spectacularly. You will take City back to the jewel-encrusted palaces of the Premier League and the far-flung corners of Europe. On Tuesday we will travel to Meadow Lane, one of the birth places of football, to play Notts County.
Normality will resume. But nothing will be quite the same.
Pep Guardiola has admitted that Newport County AFC will be “better” and “stronger” than his side in some aspects of the game when they meet at Rodney Parade tomorrow. Picture: Richard Sellers/PA Wire.
This encounter with the Amber Army will rapidly be consigned to a footnote in City’s illustrious history book. But we will never forget it.
It’s what makes the FA Cup so incredibly special. It gives small clubs like us a moment in the spotlight and the chance to dream. It will help secure our future.
Hopefully it will help make the players and fans at clubs like City appreciate everything they’ve got, bringing a touch of reality to an otherwise unreal world.
But do you know the most irrational thing? Despite all the riches, all the glory and all the success that City have, we wouldn’t swap places with you for the world. We are and always will be the Amber Army. We are One Team, One Club, One County. We are Newport County.
See you on Saturday. We can’t wait.
Best wishes,
AmberArnie
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