Sports

Man Utd claim League Cup triumph after beating Newcastle at Wembley

Published

2 years ago

February 27, 2023

Manchester United have won their first trophy since 2017, with the Red Devils beating fellow Premier League outfit Newcastle United 2-0 in the final of the EFL Cup at Wembley on Sunday afternoon.

Ahead of the match, Manchester United’s last piece of silverware had been the Europa League six years ago.

But a two-goal success over the Magpies secured Erik ten Hag’s first trophy since arriving as head coach last summer.

Newcastle were searching for their first piece of major silverware since 1955, but Eddie Howe’s side found themselves two goals down at the interval, with Casemiro making the breakthrough before Marcus Rashford had a shot deflected past Loris Karius by Sven Botman.

Man United co-owner Avram Glazer was in attendance at Wembley amid the ongoing speculation surrounding the ownership of the club, who are still on for a quadruple this season due to their presence in the FA Cup and Europa League.

Rashford was named in the starting XI despite concerns over an injury that he picked up against Barcelona in the Europa League, while Diogo Dalot and Antony came into the side following Thursday’s European counter with the La Liga leaders.

Newcastle’s headline team news involved their goalkeeper, with Karius making his debut for the club and first competitive appearance in 728 days due to Nick Pope (suspended) and Martin Dubravka (ineligible) both being unavailable.

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A lively start in the English capital saw both teams commit players forward in early attacks, with Rashford and Antony bright for Man United, while Allan Saint-Maximin and Miguel Almiron were involved for the magpies.

Dalot picked up the game’s first yellow card for hacking Saint-Maximin to the ground in the ninth minute, leaving the Portugal international in a difficult situation with a lot of football left to play.

The first chance of the match came for Wout Weghorst in the 13th minute when he worked some space inside the Newcastle box, but the on-loan Man United striker could not find a route past Karius.

Another half-chance came for the Red Devils in the 15th minute when Dalot delivered a dangerous low cross into the Newcastle box, but Fabian Schar just about did enough to make the clearance, before Karius comfortably kept out an effort from Antony.

Man United goalkeeper David de Gea made a big save to keep out a low strike from Saint-Maximin in the 32nd minute after a low Sean Longstaff cross had caused problems inside the Red Devils penalty box.

Ten Hag’s side took the lead in the 33rd minute of the contest, though, with Casemiro heading a Luke Shaw free kick into the back of the net.

There was a lengthy VAR check for a possible offside, but the goal stood, with the 20-time English champions making the breakthrough in the EFL Cup final.

Almiron scooped one over the crossbar in the 38th minute as the visitors looked to respond, but Man United scored their second less than one minute later.

Rashford proved his fitness in the build-up to kickoff, and the forward helped the Red Devils take a two-goal lead when he collected a pass from Weghorst before beating Karius, with a deflection off Botman making it difficult for the Newcastle goalkeeper.

The Magpies had an opportunity to halve the deficit in the 43rd minute when Dan Burn nodded an Almiron cross towards goal, but his effort was just wide of the post, before Karius did well to keep out a powerful Weghorst drive in the latter stages of the first period.

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Man United had a chance to score a third early in the second half when Rashford found Fred just outside the Newcastle box, but the Brazilian placed the ball wide of the post, before Karius kept out a strike from Antony.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka was introduced for Dalot at the break, with the latter on a yellow card, and the Englishman made some important interceptions during a period of pressure from Newcastle.

Bruno Fernandes had a long-range strike deflected high of the crossbar, before Karius saved from Weghorst from the resulting corner, with Man United looking for a third, which would surely have ended the contest.

Newcastle were putting the pressure on down the other end, but Howe’s side were struggling to carve out clear chances, with Man United defending their penalty box extremely well.

Saint-Maximin was a constant threat, but Wan-Bissaka was proving equal to the challenge, with the right-back impressively adapting to the pace of the match after entering at the break.

Joelinton had a powerful drive blocked away by Lisandro Martinez, with the Red Devils dropping deeper and deeper, which led to two substitutions being made.

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Scott McTominay and Marcel Sabitzer both came off the Man United bench 20 minutes from time, with Fred and Weghorst leaving the field at Wembley, which saw Rashford go through the middle.

De Gea did well to make contact on a dangerous Trippier cross in the 72nd minute before Casemiro cleared inside a crowded box, but the offside flag was raised, before Karius denied Rashford down the other end.

The pressure from the Magpies, as expected, continued in the final stages, but Man United stood up to the challenge, with De Gea performing well under pressure; Wan-Bissaka had a chance to make it 3-0 four minutes from time, but his low effort was saved by Karius.

Jacob Murphy just missed the target with a brilliant low strike late on, before De Gea saved late from Joelinton, but it was not to be for Newcastle, who will now focus on their top-four challenge in the Premier League.

Man United, who had a big chance to score a third late on through Fernandes, have won the League Cup for the sixth time in their history, and they are also still active in the FA Cup and Europa League in what could be a very successful first season at the helm for Ten Hag.

Next up for the Red Devils is a home game against West Ham United in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday, while Newcastle will continue their Premier League game away to the champions Manchester City next weekend.

Related Topics:EFL Cup Man U Newcastle United trophy

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Messi-less Argentina thrash Brazil 4-1 to secure World Cup qualification

Published

2 days ago

March 26, 2025

Trends Admin

Messi-less Argentina thrash Brazil 4-1 to secure World Cup qualification

Argentina qualified for the 2026 World Cup with a stunning 4-1 victory over archrivals Brazil in Buenos Aires on Tuesday.

Julian Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez, Alexis MacAllister, and Giuliano Simeone clinched an impressive victory for the world champions, who had already been assured of a World Cup spot following Bolivia’s 0-0 draw with Uruguay earlier Tuesday.

The goalless draw created a joyous mood at the Estadio Monumental before a ball was kicked, and Argentina continued the party with a scorching performance.

Alvarez of Atletico Madrid opened the scoring after only six minutes, latching onto Thiago Almada’s through cross and finishing from close range beyond Brazil goalkeeper Bento.

Argentina’s fortunes improved six minutes later when Chelsea’s Fernandez scored the hosts’ second goal of the night after Brazil’s back four failed to deal with a low cross.

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Brazil, trailing a surging Argentina, was given a lifeline on 26 minutes when Cristian Romero made a mistake, allowing Mattheus Cunha to score.

Tottenham defender Romero was caught in possession 25 yards from goal, allowing Cunha to break in and shoot low past Emiliano Martinez to make it 2-1.

However, any thoughts of a Brazilian comeback were dashed in the 37th minute with a spectacular goal by Mac Allister.

Almada was once again the provider, lofting a pass into the box, which Mac Allister met with a first-time volley to make it 3-1.

With Argentina in perfect control, Simeone scored his first international goal in the 71st minute, making the score 4-1.
Argentina won without their talisman and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, while Brazil were without their star forward Neymar Jr.

Both players were forced to pull out of the squad last week due to minor injuries, thwarting the chance to see the two ageing stars resume their international rivalry.

Messi-less Argentina thrash Brazil 4-1 to secure World Cup qualification

Sports

Nigeria’s Super Eagles falter in W’Cup qualifiers against Zimbabwe, S’Africa lead, Egypt, Morocco qualify

Published

2 days ago

March 26, 2025

Trends Admin

Nigeria’s Super Eagles falter in W’Cup qualifiers against Zimbabwe, S’Africa lead, Egypt, Morocco qualify

Nigeria’s Super Eagles on Tuesday conceded a last-minute goal that dealt a major blow to their 2026 World Cup qualifying hopes.
While the Nigerian team failed to beat Zimbabwe in their sixth game played in
Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Bafana Bafana of South Africa defeated Benin 2-0 to consolidate the top spot.

The South African team leads with 13 points from six rounds, five clear of Rwanda (which drew with Lesotho 1-1) and Benin. Nigeria stayed fourth in the group with just seven points.
Elsewhere, Egypt and Morocco all but booked their places at next year’s tournament.
In the game between Nigeria and Zimbabwe, Victor Osimhen with a powerful header put the Super Eagles on course to claim just their second win in Group C after Friday’s 2-0 victory over Rwanda had rekindled their qualification hopes.
But the 21-year-old Chirewa, a late substitute, equalized in the 90th minute to earn Zimbabwe’s draw.
Eric Chelle, Super Eagles coach, named the same line-up that started the team’s 2-0 win over Rwanda on Friday.
Washington Arubi, the Zimbabwean goalkeeper, produced a couple of impressive saves to keep Nigeria at bay.
The goalkeeper clawed out a swerving header from Osimhen before denying the striker a few minutes later with another acrobatic dive to save a shot fizzing into his top corner.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles have three more matches in September and October to finally determine their fate for the next World Cup proper.
They are to meet Rwanda, South Africa and Lesotho on September 8, October 6 and October 13 respectively.
Only the nine group winners secure automatic qualification. The four best-placed runners-up will compete to be the African contender in FIFA’s six-country playoff for the last two qualification spots at the World Cup next year in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

How They Stand Now

South Africa — 13 points
Rwanda — 8 points
Benin Republic — 8 points
Nigeria — 7 points
Lesotho — 6 points
Zimbabwe — 4 points

Sports

Juventus to sign Osimhen with player-plus-cash offer

Published

4 days ago

March 23, 2025

Trends Admin

Victor Osimhen

Juventus to sign Osimhen with player-plus-cash offer

Juventus are preparing to offer a player-plus-cash deal to sign Nigerian international sensation Victor Osimhen from Napoli in the summer.

The Bianconeri have identified Osimhen as a key target for their offensive overhaul, and they are willing to include defender Federico Gatti in the deal to entice their Serie A rivals to negotiate.

According to Tuttosport, Juventus is aware of the complexities of the transaction, given Napoli’s reluctance to sell such a prominent player to a direct competitor.

Osimhen was instrumental in Napoli’s Scudetto-winning campaign in 2023, scoring 26 goals and becoming the first African to win the top scorer award as the club broke a 33-year jinx.

The Old Lady’s strategy includes capitalising on Napoli coach Antonio Conte’s fondness for Federico Gatti, hoping the centre-back will satisfy the Partenopei’s defensive issues while also enabling their pursuit of the Nigerian striker.

This move comes as Juventus prepares to unload Dusan Vlahovic and renegotiate Randal Kolo Muani’s loan with Paris Saint-Germain in order to extend his time at the Allianz Stadium beyond the summer.

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Osimhen, who is presently on loan at Galatasaray, has been in top form this season, netting 20 goals in 22 league games for the Turkish giants.

Osimhen, a 26-year-old striker, broke Segun Odegbami’s 44-year-old Nigerian goalscoring record during a 2-0 victory over Rwanda in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in Kigali.

Odegbami, Nigeria’s second-highest goal scorer since 1981, expressed delight at seeing his record broken.

“Osimhen has finally overtaken me, and I think that is good because the record has been hanging on for a very long time. I am very happy for him, and I want to say good luck to him,” Odegbami stated.

“He is still young, and he has a long way to go.”

The striker is currently second only to the late Rashidi Yekini on Nigeria’s all-time scoring list, with 37 goals.

Since making his Super Eagles debut in June 2017, Osimhen has established himself as the team’s talisman, with significant performances in AFCON qualifiers, where he scored two hat tricks in 2023.