Man Utd 2 – 0 N Forest

Manchester United set up a Carabao Cup final clash with Newcastle after beating Nottingham Forest 5-0 on aggregate.

Leading 3-0 from the first leg of the semi-final after a dominant performance last week at the City Ground, United completed the task at Old Trafford with late goals from Anthony Martial and Fred to win 2-0.

He even managed to beat Jadon Sancho, making his first appearance for the club after more than three months out.

Erik ten Hag now has the chance to claim his first trophy in his debut season with the club, which will end a six-year wait since United’s last trophy – the 2017 Europa League under Jose Mourinho.

How United got the job at Old Trafford

Despite the advantage from the first leg, Ten Hag still named a strong team, with the likes of Luke Shaw, Raphael Varane and Casemiro all featured.

Forest were forced to replace Jesse Lingard with Emmanuel Dennis after the former was injured in the warm-up, which proved a further setback in their bid to do the impossible.

The first half was low key until both sides had good chances before the break. At one end Dennis was teed up by Brennan Johnson before he was denied when the shot was struck by his own team-mate in Sam Surridge. At the other end Casemiro then crossed well for Wout Weghorst, but his header hit the post.

United were comfortable but Ten Hag still opted to bring on Martial and Marcus Rashford on the hour, while they also brought on Sancho, who returned for the first time since October 22.

The pair then combined after a quick turnover as Martial fired in United’s first of the night in the 73rd minute, beating Wayne Hennessy from close range.

And a few minutes later Rashford latched on to a Bruno Fernandes cross to cross the ball for Fred, who tapped into an empty net.

Ten Hag demanded a higher standard despite the easy win

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag on Sky Sports Football:

“The first half was not honest. It was professional with the way we played, but the tempo was too slow, we didn’t create chances and let them create chances. That shouldn’t happen.

“I thought they played well, defended compactly and didn’t find gaps. The second half was a bit better with more tempo and I thought we scored some good goals.

“We just want to improve every day. I think we have a good squad and we have to demand a high standard. If we don’t reach that standard, we’re not happy. In the first half, I’m not happy. We’re United and when you’re a United player, you must meet these standards.

“Of course we’re looking forward to facing Newcastle at Wembley. It will be a fantastic final. But it’s far from us now. We’ve got the Premier League first, and Crystal Palace are there.”

Cooper is optimistic despite the loss

Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper on Sky Sports Football:

“Congratulations to Manchester United and Newcastle for reaching the final. Good luck to both of them at Wembley.

“The damage was done in the first leg if we’re honest. But we had two great chances in the first half. We haven’t played particularly well in the away grounds in the ‘big six’, but I thought we did a better tonight.

“But the club is on a higher trajectory. Think about where we were 12 months ago to where we are now, competing in the Premier League and in the semi-finals. We have to take a breath and think ‘we’re okay here’. We have to said that we are making a step forward, and we must continue to work hard.”

Keane: Man Utd better off without ‘energy cheat’

Roy Keane on Sky Sports Football:

“When the new manager came in, Man Utd was the base. But the key thing was the five or six players left. I’m not knocking all those players, but they have experience – Paul Pogba, Juan Mata, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard – the boys who was around and knew that when he left, his contract was over.

“It doesn’t help, but there’s definitely a new energy, the manager has clearly given some signs since the start of the season. The momentum, the good energy is back at the club, you feel the energy is a bit different level.

“[Cristiano] Ronaldo has been transferred, but so have five or six other players. These were great players like [Edinson] Cavani. He was a fringe player coming off the bench and when he came on, he didn’t bring much to the party, he felt he had to start. They have to come and be ready, whereas last year’s fringes that didn’t participate, you feel like it’s a powerhouse.

“Last year, there was a caretaker manager in the second half of the season. There were constant doubts. When the manager did not have that power, the players could see it. That’s why the players took the mick from him. and the situation of the club. The players took advantage of that and there was no hiding place.”

Player of the Match – Bruno Fernandes

Opta Stats after the match

• Manchester United have reached their 10th League Cup final, only Liverpool (13) have played more.
• Manchester United have won their last 12 home games in all competitions, their longest run since 12 May and December 2017. This is the longest winning streak at Old Trafford in a season since December-May in 2010-11 (17) .
• Nottingham Forest have lost their last nine meetings with Manchester United in all competitions, extending their longest losing streak against one opponent.
• With two assists from the bench, Man Utd’s Marcus Rashford has now been involved in 25 goals in all competitions this season (18 goals, 7 assists), second highest for a Premier League player after Erling Haaland (34).

When is the Carabao Cup final?

The Carabao Cup final will be held on Sunday 26 February Sky Sports Soccer.

What’s next?

Manchester United return to Premier League action at 3pm on Saturday when they host Crystal Palace at Old Trafford.

Erik ten Hag’s side then faced a rival Leeds twice in quick succession, the first at home next Wednesday at 8pm before the trip to Elland Road at 2pm on February 12, live at Sky Sports.

Nottingham Forest host Leeds at 2pm on the next match, live on Sky Sports. He then traveled to Fulham for kick-off at 3pm on February 11.