Attacking depth
Manchester United have been short of numbers in the final third at times during December and January, but the triple substitution Erik ten Hag made just after the hour mark against Nottingham Forest was a sign that options are beginning to return.
There can't have been many stronger triple changes than Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial all coming on at the same time. You wouldn't exactly describe the game as being in the balance at 0-0 at that point, given the commanding lead on aggregate, but it was a sign of depth for United and perhaps the final nail in the coffin for the visitors.
It was a wholesale change of the front three for Ten Hag, with Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Wout Weghorst all going off. That trio includes an £85million winger, one of the hottest teenagers in the game and a striker who has shown he is capable of filling in for Martial.
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With United continuing to progress in every cup competition, that squad depth is needed now. Injuries are piling up in midfield, but Ten Hag currently has two excellent options for every position in the final third, as well as Facundo Pellistri and Anthony Elanga after that.
This trio suddenly posed a greater threat than the three who had come before them. Rashford came close soon after coming on and Martial enjoyed some promise through the middle before scoring the goal that killed the tie.
Sabitzer's role
It was a late night at the end of a long day for Marcel Sabitzer on Tuesday but there was no rest on Wednesday. He was wrapped up under a woolly hat at a windy Old Trafford to watch his new team reach Wembley.
The 28-year-old is now in the appealing position of having a cup final and a potential medal to look forward to, having not played at all in the competition so far. Scott McTominay is going to be touch and go to return by February 26 and Sabitzer has a good run of games to stake his own claim.
It was easy to see him fitting into this midfield, almost certainly taking Fred's role in that shuttle between Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes. He had an excellent goalscoring record at RB Leipzig and having spent so long at that club, including under Ralf Rangnick, he is well-versed in pressing from midfield.
That was something Fred did against Forest. He pushed up alongside Fernandes when Forest tried to play out from the back and was an energetic presence. Too enthusiastic when earning a yellow card for a tackle in the first half.
Sabitzer will be available at the weekend and has been training with Bayern since the World Cup, although his 89th-minute appearance off the bench against Eintracht Frankfurt at the weekend is his only competitive action since November. He will need easing back into action but it's easy to see his style fitting into this midfield.
Fernandes has some fun
As semi-finals go this was as simple as it gets for United and Fernandes certainly seemed ready to have some fun at Old Trafford. It was a reminder of the confidence the Portuguese midfielder is playing with at the moment.
Throughout the match he seemed to be either orchestrating attacks with an array of tricks or haranguing referee Peter Bankes, who did turn in an erratic performance.
We've come to expect the latter from Fernandes, but his range of passing was exemplary against Forest. In one first-half attack he produced a volleyed backheel to find Luke Shaw, then further up the pitch an outside-of-the-boot wedge to set the same player racing down the left.
It was that same bit of leather that led to United's second goal. This time the bend on the cross was perfect for Rashford at the back post and his return pass across goal was as easy as it gets for Fred to finish off.
Going strong
Ten Hag made six changes from the win against Reading on Saturday night but still managed to field a very strong side against Forest, which is either a sign of good depth or a rotation policy that has been well-managed in the cups.
There were some surprise names in the starting XI. The return of Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez was slightly unexpected, but Ten Hag probably felt they needed the rhythm, having sat it out in the FA Cup. Casemiro is almost undroppable at the moment but given midfielders have been dropping like flies it still felt like a risk starting the Brazilian.
The 30-year-old did only play half an hour against Charlton in the previous round of this competition and was suspended for the Premier League game against Arsenal a week and a half ago, but he is so crucial to the way Ten Hag's side play at the moment that they can't afford to lose him.
A Wembley date
The Red Army signing section, partially relocated to next to the away end last night, were singing about Wembley before kick-off such was the confidence in United cruising through the second leg of this tie.
It took just four minutes of the game for a couple of Alan Shearer ditties to be aired and it is set up for an excellent final under the Wembley arch later this month.
The two United's are arguably the two most improved clubs in the Premier League this season and both are building up a significant head of steam this season. A trophy would cap that off.
Newcastle are chasing their first silverware since 1969, but United are on a six-year trophy drought of their own. While that sounds incomparable compared to the thirst on Tyneside, these things are all relevant and it's unheard of at Old Trafford. It should be some atmosphere at Wembley.
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