On a chilly evening at Wembley Stadium, Manchester United emerged as victorious in the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle United. With a final score of 2-0, Manchester United lifted the trophy and added another piece of silverware to their collection.
Manchester United took the two-goal lead in the first half
The match began with a high tempo as both teams looked to gain an early advantage. Newcastle United, who had previously knocked out Leicester city and Southampton in the competition started strongly and created a few chances in the opening minutes. However, it was Manchester United who took the lead in the 33rd minute through a well-placed header from their star midfielder, Casemiro.
Manchester United extended the lead in the 39th minute through Marcus Rashford. He received an incisive through ball from Weghorst which he slotted past Loris Karius, thanks to a deflection from Sven Botman.
The exciting second half
The second half started with Manchester United on the front foot as they looked to regain their lead. They created a couple of chances but fail to break through. However, Newcastle regained consciousness after a sloppy few minutes. They tried to mount a late comeback by constantly creating dangerous chances. However, Manchester United’s defense held firm and saw out the game to claim the Carabao Cup trophy.
Gary Neville’s thoughts on the cup final
Manchester United legend and Sky Sports Pundit Gary Neville spoke to one of the coaches after the final. He told him, they were not completely happy with the Red Devils’ performance despite winning the game.
Neville said,
“I thought it was probably as good a cup final performance as you could wish to get at Wembley, I spoke to one of the United coaches actually at the end of the game and he said he was disappointed with the fact they didn’t play the football they would expect them to play”.
He further added,
“But I just think, how many brilliant performances do you ever see at Wembley, just generally? I played there a lot with England and United. You don’t often see free-flowing football.”
“The occasion brings more nerves. Both teams were prepared like you wouldn’t believe. But to control the game in that way, to show the experience they did, I thought it was an unbelievable performance. Really impressive, shrewd and streetwise.”
The game was tighter than people would have expected. Even though Manchester United took a comfortable lead, they were made to work hard by the Magpies.
Trophy comes as a relief for Manchester United
The victory was a welcome relief for Manchester United, who had endured a difficult 5 years up until that point. Their manager, Erik ten Hag, praised his team’s performance and expressed his delight at winning his first major trophy as Manchester United manager.
