Manchester United vs Newcastle United: Carabao Cup final preview

Manchester United take on Newcastle United at Wembley Stadium on Sunday afternoon in the Carabao Cup final with both sides looking lift the first piece of silverware of the 2022/23 season.

The Red Devils booked their place in the final with a resounding 5-0 aggregate victory over Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals. A 3-0 first leg victory at the City Ground did the damage before they eased to a 2-0 win at Old Trafford thanks to goals from Anthony Martial and Fred.

Man Utd now have the opportunity to win their first trophy since lifting the League Cup in 2017. Erik ten Hag would love to get his hands on some silverware in his first season in charge at Old Trafford, so the Dutchman will be desperate to beat Newcastle at Wembley this weekend. Ten Hag has finally got United heading in the right direction and they look like they could become a force to be reckoned with again after years in the wilderness.

Man Utd booked their place in the last-16 of the Europa League after an impressive 2-1 comeback win over Barcelona on Thursday night. It sealed a 4-3 aggregate win over the La Liga leaders and they’ve been rewarded with a tie against Real Betis in the next phase. Ten Hag will be confident of progressing to the quarter-finals and they’re among the favourites to go all the way in the Europa League this season.

The Red Devils have also dragged themselves in to an unexpected Premier League title race. A superb run of form in recent months has seen United close the gap on the top two and they now sit just three points behind second-placed Man City. Leaders Arsenal are five points ahead with a game in hand, but with 14 games left to play, United are still right in the mix in the title race.

They have some tough games against Liverpool, Brighton and Newcastle coming up in the league but for now ten Hag will be fully-focussed on the task at hand – which is to win the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.

That won’t be easy against a dogged Newcastle side who are looking to end their barren spell that’s lasted over 60 years. Eddie Howe has built a solid side that are difficult to beat and they have quality in the final third to cause anyone problems. The Magpies beat Southampton 3-1 on aggregate in the semi-finals having also seen-off Tranmere Rovers, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Leicester City en route to the final.

However, Newcastle head into the game off the back of a poor run of form having won just one of their last seven Premier League games. A disappointing 2-0 defeat to Liverpool last weekend saw them drop out of the top four and they now sit fifth – one point behind Tottenham with a game in hand. The loss last weekend came at huge cost as goalkeeper Nick Pope was also sent-off which means he’ll miss Sunday’s final.

Goalkeeping issues

To make things even more complicated for Howe, number two goalkeeper Martin Dubravka is cup-tied having already represented Man Utd while on loan earlier in the season. It means Loris Karius is set to be handed his debut for Newcastle and make his first appearance in over two years. He hasn’t played for an English club since his horror-show for Liverpool in the Champions League final back in 2018 so all eyes will be on Karius to see how he handles the occasion.

Anthony Gordon is also cup-tied after representing Everton before his move in January. Emil Krafth will also be missing for Newcastle due to a serious ACL injury but Joe Willock and Joelinton are expected to be passed fit after minor knocks. Bruno Guimaraes is also available again after serving his domestic suspension.

As for Manchester United, they’ll check on Marcus Rashford after he picked up a knock against Barcelona. The England international has been in stunning form this season having scored a career-best 24 goals so far, so ten Hag will be praying the forward is available to start in Sunday’s final.

Christian Eriksen is obviously still missing for United as he’s facing a race against time to play again this season. The Denmark international was forced to undergo surgery on an ankle injury back in January – which forced ten Hag into the transfer market to sign Marcel Sabitzer on loan from Bayern Munich on deadline day. Sabitzer will be hoping for a recall after being named on the bench against Barcelona last time out, but ten Hag may be tempted to stick with Fred alongside Casemiro after his goal-scoring display against the Catalans.

Anthony Martial has once again been ruled out for Manchester United. The Frenchman has been plagued by injury issues this season and is currently on the sidelines with a groin problem which will keep him out of Sunday’s final. Donny van de Beek is also unavailable as the midfielder is working his way back from a serious knee injury that he sustained in early January.

Line-ups

Antony may have played his way back into ten Hag’s starting eleven after impressing off the bench against Barca. The Brazilian scored the winner so he could start from the right wing on Sunday with Jadon Sancho moving to the opposite flank. That would allow Rashford to start up front – assuming he’s fit – so Wout Weghorst would be the man to make way.

Diogo Dalot is pushing for a recall at right-back with Aaron Wan-Bissaka set to drop to the bench. Lisandro Martinez was excellent on Thursday night so he should keep his place alongside Raphael Varane in front of David De Gea. Luke Shaw and Bruno Fernandes are certain starters for United.

As for Newcastle, we should see a familiar back four of Kieran Trippier, Fabian Schar, Sven Botman and Dan Burn. Sean Longstaff could start in midfield along with Guimaraes and Joelinton meaning Willock misses out. Miguel Almiron will line-up in attack along with Allan Saint-Maximin with the duo supporting Callum Wilson.

Man Utd: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Fred; Antony, Fernandes, Sancho; Rashford

Newcastle: Karius; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Wilson, Saint-Maximin

How to watch

Getting hold of Man UTD tickets at the best of times is difficult, but it will be even harder for a cup final at Wembley! This event is certain to sell out so if you can’t buy through the official channels, make sure to use a reputable ticket reselling site.

If you can’t get hold of a ticket to attend in person, thankfully the match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports on Sunday afternoon, kicking off at 4.30pm. Subscribers will be able to follow all the action as it happens on TV, computer or via the Sky Sports app.

Prediction

Finals are always difficult to predict but you have to make Man Utd favourites for this one. They are the in-form team heading into the game and should be full of confidence after beating Barcelona on Thursday night.

Newcastle’s goalkeeping problems could also prove decisive as it remains to be seen how rusty Karius is and whether he’s mentally ready to play in the pressure of a big final. We predict Man Utd to ease to victory at Wembley. Man Utd 2-0 Newcastle