Mourinho to Claim First Silverware at United

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The first trophy of the season will be decided on Sunday afternoon, as Manchester United meet Southampton in the final of the League Cup at Wembley.  The match presents an opportunity for Jose Mourinho and Claude Puel to win their first silverware with Manchester United and Southampton respectively.

Manchester United won the FA Cup last season, so a trip to Wembley for a cup final is nothing new for them but for Southampton and their fans, this will be their first chance to win a major trophy since they defeated United in the FA Cup final of 1976.  Their previous visit to Wembley for a League Cup final was in 1979, a match the Saints lost to Nottingham Forest.

History is very much on Manchester United’s side and they appear to be willing to fight for every competition this season.  Their run to the final included victories over three Premier League teams, Manchester City, West Ham United and Hull City.  The second leg of the semi-final, which was at Hull towards the of January, was the last time Manchester United tasted defeat.

Southampton were drawn against a Premier League club in all four previous rounds of the tournament, defeating Crystal Palace, Sunderland, Southampton and Liverpool.  The Saints performance against Liverpool in the semi-final was especially impressive, winning both legs of the tie.

Overall form for Manchester United heading into this game is excellent and they are undefeated in their last seven games, winning six.  The Red Devils are not used to losing matches and have been defeated only once in their last twenty-five games in all competitions.  Furthermore, Manchester United have conceded just 1 goal in their previous seven games, keeping six cleans sheets and they have become very difficult to beat.

Southampton’s form has not been anywhere near as good and their 4-0 win at Sunderland last weekend in the Premier League, was their first win in four games, having lost the previous three.  Saints fans will be hoping that win sparks another spell of winning games for their club, having won and lost games in batches since the end of December.  The Premier League game at Sunderland brought a welcome clean-sheet for Southampton’s defence, which had conceded 10 goals in their previous three games, including 5 in an FA Cup defeat to Arsenal.  The back four of Southampton must be at their best for this game and the absence of Virgil van Dijk is a big blow.  Puel will be hoping Sofiane Boufal is available but Charlie Austin, Jeremy Pied, Matt Targett and Alex McCarthy all join van Dijk on the side-lines.

Manchester United will be without Henrik Mkhitaryan but he is the only major injury concern for Mourinho, who should have everyone else available, including Michael Carrick, who picked up an injury in France on Wednesday.

Southampton have defeated Manchester United twice in their last four meetings, both at Old Trafford, so they cannot be discounted. However, Mourinho has a great record in the League Cup, winning all three finals he reached with Chelsea and with his team very difficult to beat, should come out on top in this game.  It should be a close game, with both teams creating chances but Manchester United to win, with both teams scoring is a good prediction for the outcome.