Manchester United took on Southampton in the EFL Cup 2017 final at Wembley on Sunday evening and it turned out to be a cracking game of football where Southampton started stronger of the blocks but it was United who took the lead through their Talisman, Ibrahimovic who scored with a stunning freekick. Jesse Lingard continue his Wembley love affair scoring United’s second an his third consecutive in wembley finals. However Southampton got a life line just before the break Gabbiadini scored at the stroke of halftime.
Match Highlights (English)
Jose Mourinho Post Match Interview:
Manchester United 2-1 Southampton Highlights
[ EFL Cup 2017 Match ]
19′ 1 – 0 Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored with a superb freekick in just 19th minute of the game to put United 1-0 in lead.
39′ 2 – 0 Jesse Lingard made it 2-0 in 40th minute when his well placed shot from edge of the box found its way into the back of the net.
45′ 2 – 1 Manolo Gabbiadini brought Southampton into the game at stroke of halftime.
49′ 2 – 2 Manolo Gabbiadini
87′ 3 – 2 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Southampton are a decent side who defeated Liverpool 2-0 on aggregate in the semifinals winning both legs 1-0. They are compact at the back and offer incredible pace on the counter attack which caused all sorts of problems for Liverpool. However this United side are a different animal who are dynamic and play in couple of different systems thanks to a quality squad. There are injury worries for both sides going into the game and we take a look who will be play and missing on Sunday.
Team News & Possible Lineups:Southampton will be without captain Van Dijk, Charlie Austin and Sofian Boufal. But manager Claude Puel can still put together a quality starting lineup with loads of pace upfront with the likes of Shane Long and Redmond providing runs in behind the defense.
Ibrahimovic and Pogba holds the key for United in the final. Ibrahimovic grabbed a brace when last time these two meet back in August.
Jose Mourinho on the other hand will be without Michael Carrick and Henrik Mikhitaryan who both wobbled off during Europa League game. Wayne Rooney and Luke Shaw are set to miss out again as things behind the scenes kind of playing its part in them being overlooked. Mourinho is likely to go with Ibrahimovic upfront while Anthony Martial, Juan Mata and Pogba to start in attacking roles while Fellaini to partner Herrera in midfield. This is how I expect both teams to lineup on Sunday.
Match Predictions: United coming into this game knackered by so many games and it is starting to take its toll with Carrick and Mikhitaryan both missing out on the final. On the other hand it eases selection headech for Mourinho but he still have to make a massive decision whether to start with Martial or Rashford in the final. Regardless what team lineup he goes with United will be favourites but I expect Southampton to make a game of it and surprisingly I am going with Southampton to win this one largely down to the face they will be fresher of the two.
