Manchester United 2-0 Newcastle United (Casemiro 33′, Botman OG 39′)
Casemiro made it 11 wins from 13 career cup finals as he orchestrated Manchester United’s Carabao Cup triumph over Newcastle at Wembley on Sunday.
The midfielder – a £65m summer signing at the age of 30 – delivered once again as Erik ten Hag’s field marshal. It was his bullet header from a free kick that catapulted United ahead against the run of play on 33 minutes, before Marcus Rashford’s deflected shot doubled their lead before the break.
Newcastle started the final at blistering pace but United’s midfield kept cool and steadily turned the flow of the game, aided by Wout Weghorst’s willingness to drop deep and muck in.
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In fact it ended up as something of a routine victory for United, who are now unbeaten in 10 games since that 3-2 loss at Arsenal in late-January, and who face West Ham in the FA Cup on Wednesday.
Weghorst and Antony both had chances to extend United’s lead, while Karius denied Rashford midway through the second half. As for Newcastle, manager Eddie Howe threw on his attacking arsenal late in the game but they laboured to carve out even half-chances against a robust United defence protected by the ever-present Casemiro.
Man Utd player ratings
David de Gea – Produced a great first-half save off Saint-Maximin from close range but had very little to do after that. As easy a game at Wembley he’ll ever get. 6
Diogo Dalot – Had the unenviable task of handling Saint-Maximin and was booked just nine minutes in. Was also flummoxed by the Frenchman on the half hour. Hooked at the break for Wan-Bissaka. 5
Raphael Varane – Teamed up with Martinez to bully first Wilson and then Isak. Barely gave Newcastle a sniff of goal and maintained his position well. 7
Lisandro Martinez – Quick in the challenge and anticipated loose balls well. His relationship with Varane has developed all season. 8
Luke Shaw – Was never really tested by Almiron on his flank, and had Casemiro to help out with defensive duties. Always looks comfortable at Wembley. 7
Fred – Appeared to be chasing shadows in the early throes and was rightly booked on 37 mins. Newcastle argued for a second yellow before the break. Eventually subbed off for McTominay. 6
Casemiro – Quiet, effective and almost impossible to play through. Casemiro was the metronome of this United side once again and got the fans going with his meaty tackles and precision passing. He deservedly opened the scoring. 9
Antony – Appeared to shake off a groin problem early on and toyed with Newcastle defender Burn at times. Was able to hold the ball up well and helped cover Saint-Maximin’s runs when not in possession. 7
Bruno Fernandes – Had one of his quieter games for United but nevertheless was quick to distribute out wide when the ball fell to him. Missed a sitter at the death. 6
Marcus Rashford – Appeared quite isolated out on the left until he latched onto Weghorst’s through-ball for the second goal. Was lucky with the deflection but everything Rashford touches turns to gold right now. 8
Wout Weghorst – Saw an early shot saved when he should have done better, but dropped deep and turned to provide the assist for Rashford, before forcing a great first-half save off Karius. Learned to step away from the physical Botman and Schar, and open a pocket for others to run into. 7
Subs:
Aaron Wan-Bissaka – Replaced the booked Dalot at half time and did better at handling Saint-Maximin. Came forward with energy too on occasion. 7
Marcel Sabitzer – Came on for Weghorst and, like McTominay, helped clog the midfield and make it hard for Newcastle to chase the game. 6
Scott McTominay – Eventually replaced Fred to inject some energy into the midfield. Helped wind the clock down. A professional substitute’s display. 6
Jadon Sancho – Replaced Antony for the last 10 minutes. N/A
Newcastle player ratings
Loris Karius – Couldn’t do anything about the first goal but could arguably had reacted better to the deflection for the second. Karius’ inclusion instead of Nick Pope wasn’t going to define this game, but it didn’t help Newcastle. 6
Kieran Trippier – Pushed forward as usual and had command of Rashford’s flank for much of the game. The United striker responded by drifting inside and scoring. 7
Fabian Schar – Tasked with muscling it out against Weghorst and forced the striker to move out of position, but couldn’t do much about either of United’s goals. 6
Sven Botman – Was caught out by Rashford’s lightning pace for United’s second goal but had looked comfortable up until then. Booked for complaining to the referee. 6
Dan Burn – Antony toyed with him at times but Burn had a generally steady game. Wasn’t helped with Joelinton being largely ineffectual in front of him. 6
Sean Longstaff – Spent the first 20 minutes dominating the midfield and providing the link through to attack. But his influence waned and he came off at half time with Newcastle chasing the game. 6
Bruno Guimaraes – Hobbled through an injury and offered some muscle in midfield but, like Longstaff, his influence waned once United got a grip on the game. 6
Joelinton – The most obscure of Newcastle’s attacking cohort, Joelinton was eventually booked for letting his frustrations spill over. A disappointing performance from the Brazilian. 5
Miguel Almiron – Linked up well with Trippier when going forward but came up against Casemiro and Shaw all too often, and had to turn back. Was more effective when, on occasion, he drifted into the centre. 6
Callum Wilson – Never really had a run on either Varane nor Martinez, and lost the physical battle there too. A disappointing afternoon for the striker. 5
Allan Saint-Maximin – Was Newcastle’s main outlet to run at the United defence, and forced Ten Hag to sub off the booked Dalot. Gave Wan-Bissaka plenty to do too, but Newcastle were too one-dimensional in relying on him. 7
Subs:
Alexander Isak – Came on for Longstaff at the break, but like Wilson couldn’t pick his way through United’s central-defensive partnership. 7
Jacob Murphy – Replaced Saint-Maximin for the last 12 minutes but ended up doing more defensive work than attacking. 7
Joe Willock – Came on late as Howe threw everything he had at an elusive goal. 6
