“What form he’s in” – Nottingham Forest 0-3 Man Utd

Manchester United took a firm grip on their Carabao Cup semi-final tie against Nottingham Forest with a 3-0 first-leg win at The City Ground this evening.

Erik ten Hag’s men were again indebted to Marcus Rashford, the in-form forward netting his 10th goal across 10 matches in all competitions since returning from Qatar last month, as well as newcomer Wout Weghorst and captain Bruno Fernandes. To put this in some further context Rashord is the first player based in one of Europe’s top-five leagues since the World Cup break to reach double figures. “What form he’s in,” Gary Neville would exclaim on Sky Sports commentary.

His sixth-minute opener was a fifth of the competition making him the first United player to score as many in a single League Cup campaign since Carlo Tevez with six during the 2008/09 season.

It also came a day after head coach Ten Hag urged him to remain at Old Trafford and restore the 20-time English champions’ past glories. The academy graduate’s present deal expires in June 2024 and there’s been reported interest from elsewhere.