Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
It’s the final Sunday in February and that can only mean one thing – it’s EFL Cup Final Day. I don’t know about you but I hate the name of the competition, that said the Carabao Cup as it’s going to be called next season is no better. Bring back the Milk Cup (ask your Dad)
And with it being EFL Cup Final Day it means that the first major silverware of the season will be handed out as Manchester United take on Southampton at Wembley. United have already had a happy trip to Wembley this season, they ran out 1-0 winners over Leicester in the Community Shield last August giving Jose Mourinho the perfect start to his time in charge of the Old Trafford outfit.
A league title may well be out of reach for them this season but it seems as if Jose Mourinho and Manchester United are doing their very best to pick up all other possible silverware. They could win a quadruple come the end of the season (Community Shield included) and arguably the only thing stopping them would be fixture congestion.
In addition to their place in Today’s final they have reached both the F.A. Cup Quarter Finals and the Europa League Round of 16 and unlike many managers or even himself previously he is taking these particular editions of the respective competitions very seriously.
He will have to what with the fact that they have been paired up with runaway league leaders Chelsea at the Quarter Final stage of the F.A. Cup but clear that hurdle and the possibility of defending their trophy becomes a lot more of a realistic possibility.
Not only that but should a top four place allude them then always have a plan b. That being victory in the Europa League, should that happen then it will allow the club a backdoor entry and a long overdue return to Europe’s top club competition.
Although Jose Mourinho made a point on how fixture congestion could be the only thing that gets in their way in the quest for multiple silverware you do get the feeling that if anyone has the squad to compete on so many fronts then it is Manchester United.
Whether they can go on and win a quadruple of trophies remains to be seen and it won’t be four pieces of silver if they do not complete the task in hand this Afternoon and that is getting the better of a Southampton side which has already seen off Arsenal and Liverpool in this competition.
United come into this game off a trio of cup victories. The short trip to Blackburn last Sunday saw them come from behind to beat Blackburn Rovers in what was to end up being Owen Coyle’s last game in charge of the Championship outfit.
It needed a late Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal to edge past Blackburn and that victory was the meat in a Saint Etienne victory sandwich as wins both home and away in the Europa League Round of 32 now sees them paired up with FC Rostov of Russia in the next stage of the competition.
Wednesday’s win in France came at a small cost though as Eric Bailly was sent off and Henrikh Mkhitaryan came off with an injured hamstring and will now miss the showpiece game this Afternoon. A cruel blow for the Armenian international especially with the form he has been is as of late.
Opponents Southampton do not have any fresh injury worries but they do have a number of long term ones. Charlie Austin, Jeremy Pied, Matt Targett and Alex McCarthy are all long term absentees while that is not forgetting the fact that Virgil Van Dijk is also unavailable.
Many feel that after the impressive performances of Van Dijk in the first half of the season he will move on from St Mary’s come the end of the season. That may not come as no real surprise to Southampton fans as they conveyor belt of talent leaving the club each Summer looks set to continue.
But what will obviously be a disappointment to Van Dijk is that the injury that will see the Dutchman ruled out for the rest of the season will not only that mean that his Southampton career has all but ended but he also misses the opportunity to lift some silverware later on Today.
Southampton have blown hot and cold in the Premier League this season as they learn to live without Ronald Koeman but Claude Puel has done an admirable job especially as he had to once again rebuild a squad which has been shorn of it’s talents in the close season.
Thankfully though for Puel although there seems to be a conveyor belt of talent leaving the club there is also a conveyor belt of talent coming through their academy. The crop of youngsters that have been allowed to show their worth is testament to the regeneration powers this club continues to possess.
Southampton find themselves just outside the top half of the table at present and you would have to say that their league campaign has been solid if not spectacular. They’ve never been threatened with relegation but never threatened to reach the heady heights of the previous two seasons either.
But a cup success at Wembley this Afternoon would certainly make up for any perceived deficiencies that they may have in the league. They come into this game having won two of their last four matches, wins against Leicester and Sunderland book end defeats to Swansea and West Ham.
You could argue that Southampton have perhaps saved their best football for this competition. They were excellent in two legs with Liverpool in the Semi Finals while they traveled to The Emirates and easily outclassed Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal in the round prior.
Can they make it a hat-trick of relative scalps? Well they will need to be strong at back and new signing Martin Caceres could very much make himself an instant hero if he can keep the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Juan Mata and Paul Pogba quiet.
The former Barcelona and Juventus defender has had quite a nomadic career as his body seems to have let him down on numerous occasions. But you don’t play for so many big clubs if there is not some talent there and although Southampton may be taking a punt in signing him they will hope that it is a gamble that pays off.
One gamble that is certainly paying off for Southampton is the club record signing of Manolo Gabbiadini. His £16m capture from Napoli has already paid dividends with the Italian international scoring 3 times in his first two appearances for the club.
He will be unleashed at Wembley with the simple objective to deliver the firepower that Southampton are going to require if they are to get the better of Manchester United. United obviously go into the game as favourites but in a cup final anything can happen, will this one go to form or will the form book go out the window?
