Manchester United-Newcastle is the League Cup final and it’s played on Sunday at 5:30pm: live free-to-air TV, streaming, likely line-ups, predictions
In the last two decades there has been very little satisfaction for Newcastle fans, to the point of being counted on the fingers of one hand. The club have almost always struggled to avoid relegation in that time, but have not always managed it.
Finished in the cadet league in 2009 and 2016, they immediately managed to win back the Premier League. The turning point came a year and a half ago, when he was bought by the very rich Saudi fund Pif. Many immediately imagined a rosy future for the Magpies, but it was difficult to predict that they would become a credible contender for one of the four Champions League places so quickly. More importantly, that they would so soon be playing for their first title 24 years after their last appearance in a final of a domestic competition. In the 1998-99 season Newcastle just so happened to be defeated by Manchester United at Wembley. At that time it was the FA Cup, but this time the two teams will compete in a single match for the League Cup, the third most important English event. For Eddie Howe and his men, this is a landmark achievement, one that could usher in a new era.
Newcastle haven’t won a title since the 1950s
Not counting the 2006 Intertoto, the last title won by the Bianconeri dates back to the 1950s, when the Magpies lifted their sixth FA Cup. A fast of gigantic proportions when compared, for example, with that of the Red Devils, who have not won a trophy since the Mourinho management: in 2016-17 they won not only the Europa League, but also the League Cup, putting it in their trophy cabinet for the fifth time in their history.
Eddie Howe
Erik ten Hag, who arrived in Manchester this year, could wet his debut season with a piece of silverware: not bad for the former Ajax coach who is trying to lift the destiny of a team that has collected disappointment after disappointment in recent times. Third in the standings behind Arsenal and City, Manchester United are going through a golden moment: unbeaten for nine matches in all competitions and last Thursday they won qualification for the round of 16 of the Europa League by eliminating Barcelona, defeated 2-1 at Old Trafford. In contrast, Newcastle, who lost their first home match against Liverpool a week ago, arrived at the Wembley final in a slight decline. A defeat preceded by two draws with West Ham and Bournemouth, which caused the Magpies to slip out of the top four and encouraged Tottenham to overtake them.
Red Devils fans are anxious about the condition of their best player, Marcus Rashford, who came off injured in the match against Barça: the Englishman is expected to clench his teeth. Newcastle, on the other hand, will be without their starting goalkeeper Pope. Defending the posts will be Karius, infamous for his clamorous mistakes in the 2018 Champions League final between Liverpool and Real.
The last precedent dates back to October 2022 and at Old Trafford Newcastle, currently the Premier League’s best defence with only 15 goals conceded, managed to stop Manchester United at 0-0. The Red Devils seem to be better today, they find the way of the goal very often, but it is not at all easy to face a team like the Bianconeri, especially in a one-off match. It will be a tight match, with United slightly favoured to win the trophy. It cannot be ruled out, however, that it will go into extra time. And that the total number of goals will be less than four, a constant in the Magpies’ matches.
The Manchester United-Newcastle matchday squad
- MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Fred; Antony, Bruno Fernandes, Sancho; Rashford.
- NEWCASTLE (4-3-3): Karius; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Wilson, Saint-Maximin.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-1
