MANCHESTER:
Manchester United won their first major trophy for six years with a 2-0 victory against the charity Newcastle in the League Cup final at Wembley on Sunday.
Erik ten Hag’s side dominated at half-time thanks to Casemiro’s header and Sven Botman’s own goal and held firm despite Newcastle’s second-half dominance.
United’s first silverware since 2017, when they won the League Cup and Europa League under Jose Mourinho, was just reward for a mature display that underlined the outstanding work done by Dutchman. Ten Haka since arriving from Ajax last year.
The celebrations that accompanied the sixth victory of the United League Cup could be the first of many symbolic poems on the evidence of the first change of Ten Hag.
“You have to win the first one and that’s what we did today,” said Ten Hag.
“We can get a lot of inspiration from this and be more confident that we can do it.
“We are still at the beginning of the recovery Manchester United where we are – winning trophies.”
United remain challenging at the other three points, sitting third in the Premier League and FA Cup fifth round tie against West Ham on Wednesday followed by a Europa League last 16 tie with Real Betis in March.
After 10 years in the wilderness since Alex Ferguson retired after leading them to their last League Cup in 2013, United have finally emerged from one of the darkest periods in the history of the club.
United finished sixth in the Premier League last season, but Ten Hag quickly managed their return to contention.
It was fitting that Ten Hag’s first win with United would happen after meeting Ferguson for dinner recently with the Scot watching from the Wembley stand.
Ending United’s longest drought for 40 years is not a guarantee of future success, but the ten Hag steel seems to be able to thrive under the watchful eyes of Old Trafford.
United chairman Avram Glazer, attending his first game since announcing in November that his family were considering offers for the club, may reconsider selling after seeing out the start of the season gold.
Despite the failure to win their first major cup since the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Newcastle can also expect to appear in some recent exhibitions.
Newcastle have been rejuvenated since their recruitment by the Saudi-funded consortium in 2021 and they have been competing strongly in their last major cup for 24 years.
“We play well between the two boxes. I can’t fault the players’ efforts, but we didn’t defend the free kick well for the first goal. That’s what we regret, “Howe said.
Newcastle’s flamboyant ‘Toon Army’ turned one half of Wembley into a raging sea of black and white as they belted out songs of praise for their heroes in the more than an hour before the start.
But that display of Geordie passion proved the highlight of the day for Newcastle as United spoiled the party in heartbreaking style.
Newcastle’s goalkeeper Loris Karius was feared to be facing his first serious injury since his woes in Liverpool’s 2018 Champions League final against Real Madrid.
Playing instead of the suspended Nick Pope, Karius may have felt he could have done better with United’s second goal, but he is not to blame for Newcastle’s defeat.
United went ahead in the 33rd minute when Luke Shaw’s free-kick was headed into Newcastle’s six-yard box and Casemiro was perfectly timed to head the ball past Karius.
Just a reward for the most recent example of the United midfielder after his departure from Real Madrid last year.
Ten Hag’s team gained momentum and doubled their lead in the 39th minute.
Wout Weghorst’s pass found Marcus Rashford in the area and, with Newcastle’s defenders slow to react, he hit an errant shot that deflected off Botman and rolled over the bar. Karius is wrong.
Newcastle attacked David De Gea’s goal in the second half but, showing the desire and organization required by their manager, Ten Hag’s team refused to surrender.
If United’s last League Cup triumph ended up being fool’s gold, this success suggests that the Ten Hag era is being built on stronger foundations.
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