Five things learned: Nottingham Forest 0-3 Manchester United (Carabao Cup)

Manchester United put one foot in the EFL Cup final with a 3-0 win away from home at the atmospheric City Ground in Nottingham.

Manchester United got going almost immediately on Trentside with Marcus Rashford charging through the Forest defence before finishing past Wayne Hennessey in just the sixth minute, continuing his fantastic run of form.

The rest of the half played out as a very end-to-end one, with neither side really ever taking control. Ten Hag was looking visibly frustrated at this on the touchline, but was calmed just before half-time, with Wout Weghorst pouncing on an Antony shot that forced an excellent save from Hennessey to score his first Manchester United goal. Bruno Fernandes rounded off the scoring with a fantastic strike from a clever Anthony Elanga setup right at the end to kill the tie.

Here are five things UtdDistrict learnt from the semi-final first-leg win:

1) Rashford continues his goalscoring charge

Marcus Rashford has scored in all but one of his games following the World Cup, with today no exception. When he received the ball from Casemiro with an entire flank to drive down, fans almost knew exactly what would happen next.

Rashford is one of the most feared forwards in English football right now and for very good reason too. He is simply unstoppable right now with 10 goals and two assists in the 10 games following the World Cup. It feels very promising that a chunk of these – including tonight’s goal – have come with his weaker left foot when previously he was very reluctant to use it. This just goes to show how much he has improved under Ten Hag.

2) Casemiro is back, and his impact is immediate

Tonight was far from a perfect game for Casemiro. He, like many of his teammates, looked sloppier than usual and had some shaky moments. But the team with him and the team without him are different teams entirely.

His presence in midfield is matched by few players in world football, and even in what was a shaky game for his standards United’s midfield looked unrecognisable from Sunday’s total mess due to his defensive strength, he just seems to be everywhere at once. He also played a part in both goals, and United fans will be hoping he does not miss another game.

3) Poor game in possession shows United still have a long way to go

The result may suggest a comfortable win from United, but it was far from that. United were very much made to work for the win. After Rashford opened the scoring, Forest were probably the better side up until Weghorst doubled the scoring on the stroke of half-time. They had a goal disallowed for a marginal offside after a torridly defended transition by United.

Christian Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes were on totally different wavelengths, and those wavelengths were both sloppy and wasteful. This had an impact on the entire team. The second half saw some improvement but as a whole, it was not good enough from Ten Hag’s men and showed that the side have a long path to tread (a path that includes some new signings) before they really reach the level Ten Hag desires them to be at.

4) Antony with his best United performance yet

Amid all the chaos, Antony had a very impressive performance for United. By far his most positive performance so far, he was genuinely finding good passes and creating opportunities up until he was substituted for Pellistri.

Antony’s performances have been mixed, dividing many fans. But Erik ten Hag signed him for a reason and today he showed a lot of glimpses as to why he was signed with a very bright performance that he was unlucky to not leave with a goal.

5) United one step closer to ending trophy drought

This season has had its highs and lows. But a 3-0 win in the first leg has almost sealed United’s place in the EFL Cup final next month, and with that the opportunity to end a trophy drought that has lasted since 2017. Erik ten Hag himself has remarked on the importance of winning a trophy this season.

United still must finish in the top four – something that looks highly likely at present – and still look to go far in their other competitions. But a trophy win coupled with Champions League qualification for the 2023/24 season would objectively make Ten Hag’s first season in the Old Trafford hot seat a success, given the position United were in when he took over.