Manchester United vs Newcastle United
Wembley Stadium, London, England
Sunday, Feb 26th | 11:30am | ESPN+
This weekend we have ourselves the first domestic cup final of the season in England’s League Cup Final or rather due to sponsorship reasons, the Carabao Cup Final. Thanks to England having two domestic cup competitions, unlike most European nations who have just one, the League Cup Final takes place every January or February, which is a nice treat for fans to enjoy in the middle of the European club calendar. In this edition of the Carabao Cup Final, there are storylines galore.
For Manchester United, they enter this match in fine-fettled form. The Red Devils have surged up the Premier League table and now sit third just behind rivals Arsenal and Manchester City. Erik ten Haag has provided a stroke of genius since arriving in Manchester, and especially since parting ways with Cristiano Ronaldo in the fall of 2022. Instead of the Portuguese international, ten Haag has put is faith in Man U’s academy graduate Marcus Rashford to lead the forward line, and the Dutchman has been rewarded with Rashford scoring game in and game out. Rashford, an England international, has scored 16 goals over the past 17 matches in all competitions, including a brace this past weekend against Leicester City.
As for Newcastle, the Magpies will be taking the pitch Sunday in a cup final for the first time this century! The last time Newcastle featured in a final was in the 1998-99 season. That year, the Magpies played in the FA Cup Final, and interestingly enough, they faced off against Manchester United as well. The Red Devils won that match 2-0 en route to securing the Treble. Thus, for the Magpie supporters, this is the most anticipated fixture in decades. But, how will Newcastle fair on the pitch?
For much of this season, the Magpies has been a revelation. They’ve been perched atop the Premier League’s Top 4 all season, well until this weekend anyway. Newcastle lost just its second match of the league campaign this past Saturday to Liverpool. Coincidentally, both losses have come against the Reds, home and away. However, the Magpies have now gone winless in six of the past seven games, and as such are now sliding down the table, currently outside the Champions League places in fifth.
Coinciding with the lack of form has been the loss of Bruno Guimaraes through injury. Guimaraes had been the key cog in Newcastle’s midfield. When healthy this season, the Brazilian has routinely dictated play through providing the midfield with defensive stoutness and a high level of confidence and passing nous. In turn, the Magpies often times won the battle in the center of the park en route to winning or drawing said match.
In addition to the midfield’s woes and despite the arrival of pacey forward Anthony Gordon from Everton during the winter transfer window, Newcastle has lost its luster in the final third of the field. The likes of Callum Wilson, Allan Saint-Maximin, Miguel Almiron, and Alexander Isak have gone cold in front of goal, and all at the same time. That’s a recipe for dropping points and losing games. However, will that change come Sunday?
LSB Prediction
This final should be a real ‘cracker! Despite the recent struggles, I expect Newcastle to give it their absolute best in their first cup final in nearly 25 years. The Newcastle crowd will be extremely boisterous, providing an extra oomph of energy to the Magpie squad. Meanwhile, Erik ten Haag has his eyes set on winning his first piece of silverware at Manchester United, a United squad that’s still competing on all fronts as I write this article by the way. With that said, it’ll be interesting to watch Man U’s energy levels throughout this game considering the Red Devils will have just competed in a hotly contested Europa League match against Barcelona on Thursday.
After 90 minutes though, the Red Devils will do just enough to edge the Magpies, thanks to Marcus Rashford and the rejuvenated Jadon Sancho! Manchester United 2 - 1 Newcastle United