Manchester United qualified without problems for the final of the English League Cup, this Wednesday, by defeating Nottingham Forest 2-0 at Old Trafford, after having already won 3-0 in the first leg of the semifinals.
The final will be played on February 26 in London and in it United will face Newcastlewho on Tuesday sealed his ticket against Southampton, whom he also won in the two matches of the match (1-0 and 2-1).
Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag He left Marcus Rashford on the bench to give him rest, but beyond that his eleven made it clear that he did not take this Wednesday’s game as a simple procedure.
Fred started with Casemiro, in the absence of the injured Christian Eriksen, while Marcel Sabitzer, on loan from Bayern Munich on Tuesday, followed the game from the stands, waiting to get his visa.
Nottingham Forest, thirteenth in the Premier League With a four-point advantage just over the red zone of the table, they tried to get ahead in the first half to get into the tie, although with more will than effectiveness.
In that first part, the best chance was for United, with a header from the Dutchman Wout Weghorst that went off the post, just before the break.
The changes after the break, with the entries of Rashford, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho (who hadn’t played since the end of October) made the second part more lively.
– Martial and Fred score –
Ten minutes later, after a ball from Casemiro, Martial he launched into a counterattack and after a shot from Rashford the ball went to the feet of the French attacker, taking advantage to make it 1-0 in the 73rd minute.
Three minutes later, Rashford, on the left side of the areahe was able to direct a ball to Fred, who only had to push with his thigh two meters from the goal (2-0, minute 76), putting an end to any doubt.
“We just want to improve every day. We have a good squad, so we have to push ourselves and maintain a high level. It is what we have to do in every match, we are Manchester United,” Ten Hag said at the end of the match, in statements to Sky Sports.
Manchester United will therefore have the chance to win their first title since 2017the year in which they won the English League Cup and the Europa League.
Ten Hag already began to get excited about lifting the title at the end of this month, although he is aware that new challenges await his team beforehand, including a Europa League tie against FC Barcelona (February 16 and 23).
“Of course, we are looking forward to playing (the final of the League Cup). You have to go to Wembley and it will be against Newcastle United, which is a great team. But it’s far away,” he pointed out.
