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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Jonathan Gorrie

Erik ten Hag sends bullish Carabao Cup final message as Manchester United prepare for Newcastle

Erik ten Hag insists merely taking Manchester United to the Carabao Cup final is not enough.

A 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest on Wednesday saw them set-up a Wembley date with Newcastle later this month, with United progressing 5-0 winners on aggregate.

Ten Hag now has the chance to end United’s longest trophy drought in over 40 years, while his team remain on course to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Given the shambolic situation ten Hag walked into after leaving Ajax, that represents a remarkable turnaround in fortunes.

United will be making their first appearance in a domestic final since 2018, when Jose Mourinho’s side were beaten by Antonio Conte’s Chelsea in the FA Cup.

Under the stewardship of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United lost a number of high-profile semi-finals, as well as the final of the Europa League.

Now, however, they could put an end to such heartbreak should they overcome in-form Newcastle.

"It’s great but you play finals to win,” he said.

“It is not an achievement to come into a final. We want to win them but first we have other things to do.

“We come back to the Premier League and bury this cup."

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