The saturation on TV of live football doesn't encourage fans returning from work to turn round and go out in midweek to attend a football match, in a competition that is perceived as being sub standard by the managers by the fact that they play their 'lesser/recovering' players, when most nights they can catch a live game/sport of some form on the end of their remote control.
The TV issue is a valid point, and quite often this competition is played when Champions League football is on, or as was the case last week on the same night as the EFL Cup 2nd round, however this week it is an international break, there is no other football on tonight (bar a full program in the National League) so there's no excuse this week!
That said, this competition has suffered because of "weakened teams"......and to be honest that goes for the EFL Cup and the FA Cup too.
Cup Competitions have been devalued, by Clubs and Managers alike.....FA Cup replays scrapped because "they get in the way", FA Cup Semi finals at Wembley, weakened teams put out by the big clubs (quite why teams need to rest 10 or 11 players after playing four league games is a mystery) and so on.
English football does (I think) need to look at itself and ask whether they still want all the Cup Competitions. Sure the EFL Trophy has additional issues such as the U21/23/B team thing, but its part of a bigger picture. The Premier League is all about getting into Europe, The Championship is all about getting into the Premier League, and League 1 and 2 are just there because they always have been.
