Marcus Rashford scored a brilliant solo goal to help Man Utd produce one of the most comfortable football results of the weekend in the Carabao Cup. After Wout Weghorst’s first goal in a Manchester United jersey and Bruno Fernandes’ late third goal gave Erik ten Hag’s team a dominating lead going into the second leg at Old Trafford, Marcus Rashford’s incredible solo goal had opened the scoring. On a boisterous night beside the Trent, Forest competed fiercely the entire time and thought they had an equalizer in the first half until Sam Surridge’s shot was disallowed for offside. However, it was the United fans who were singing of Wembley and hoping to end their six-year trophy drought.
After years of Manchester City and Liverpool monopolizing this competition, both sets of fans made for a loud environment, and the promise of a trophy was enough to get everyone excited. But thanks to the effective Rashford, United quickly asserted itself. The build-up to the opening goal was when he saved his most brilliant work, sliding past Remo Freuler and Joe Worrall from deep, riding the ricochets, and putting the ball in with his left foot. He had previously had a couple of early opportunities to rush at the Forest defense.
Rashford has now scored 10 goals in 10 games, and even the decision to charge the defendant with such a purpose says a lot about how confident the English attacker is right now. Forest had to reorganize, and if the next important call had gone in their favor, the evening might have been different. Due to Rashford’s careless pass, Morgan Gibbs-White was given the opportunity to break, and Surridge’s pass to him appeared to have been perfectly timed for the striker to caress the ball into the far corner of David de Gea’s goal. Replays demonstrated that Surridge was merely offside.
Gustavo Scarpa’s nasty volley forced a deft save in response to Forest’s attempt to tie the score, and Brennan Johnson appeared dangerous on the right channel. However, Weghorst’s goal soon before halftime put even the most ardent Forest supporters to the test. Dean Henderson’s replacement, Wayne Hennessey, stopped Antony’s initial shot, but he was only able to push the ball into Weghorst’s path. Weghorst did well to keep the ball down in order to outwit the goalie. It was due to the Dutchman’s astute performance that it was awarded.
He played a fantastic hold-up, encouraging those around him to follow their passes in the belief that he would locate them. Christian Eriksen was about to score the third goal, but Fernandes was the one who found it. Forest gains some understanding thanks to his late-game low strike from just inside the box. They will shortly consider staying in the Premier League. The possibility of a final versus Newcastle or Southampton presents United with the opportunity to end their trophy drought.
“For strikers, it is crucial at all times. He did a wonderful job pressing and being a target against Crystal Palace and Arsenal, I thought, and his movements,” Man Utd head coach Erik ten Hag said. “I believe Bruno played a role in Crystal Palace’s goal because he made the appropriate move to the front post. He contributed to Rashford’s goal against Arsenal. By moving the center half, he created room for Rashford.”
“It’s a really dismal final score. The last thing you want in a two-legged match is to lose 3-0 and then have to travel to Old Trafford for the second game. Just the way the goals are set, when they are set, and how they came about,” Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper said. “Rashford is one of the most productive players in the nation, therefore it was frustrating that we allowed him to act in the way that he did. Our second goal was not part of the plan.”
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