Man Utd 4 West Ham 1: Ibrahimovic and Martial both score twice as banned Mourinho watches on from a ‘secret’ place
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ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC and Anthony Martial both bagged braces to put Manchester United through to the EFL Cup semi finals after West Ham were swept aside at Old Trafford.
Ibrahimovic gave the Red Devils the lead inside two minutes after a slick move ended in Henrikh Mkhitaryan backheeling the ball to the Swede who coolly dinked the ball past Adrian.
Jose Mourinho's side continued to dominate the opening half an hour at Old Trafford with the Hammers struggling to cope with their quick tempo.
But the Irons were offered a lifeline after former Manchester United youngster Ashley Fletcher scored his first goal for the Irons since leaving Old Trafford in the summer.
It came from a Dimitri Payet strike which David De Gea fumbled and the 21-year-old was on hand to tuck away the loose ball home.
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The Red Devils responded just three minutes into the second half after Mkhitaryan claimed his second assist of the game after he cut the ball back to Martial who fired the ball into the top left corner.
Martial had another chance less than ten minutes later after Wayne Rooney slotted him through on goal but Adrian denied the Frenchman.
But just after the hour mark the forward did not fluff his lines after he side footed the ball into the back of the net after a precise low cross from Antonio Valencia.
United fans were given something else to celebrate as well as the victory after Bastien Schweinsteiger was handed a late cameo in the 86th minute.
Deep into stoppage time United struck a fourth goal after trickery from Ander Herrera in the box saw him square it to Ibrahimovic who simply tapped the ball home.
FACTS, STATS GOALS & LOLS
- Zlatan Ibrahimovic can split opinion but this was a tenth goal in 20 appearances.
- While he might not have scored Wayne Rooney looked like he had the bit between his teeth last night with some excellent control and through balls.
- However Rooney’s fifth caution of the season for a second half foul means he will not now be able to reach Sir Bobby Charlton’s record back at Goodison Park on Sunday.
- That unfortunately means he might do it in in Odessa in the Ukraine next Thursday before a few hundred travelling United fans in a Europa League clash with Zorya Luhansk. Not the venue or competition to reach such a milestone.
- Herikh Mkhitaryan has not had many games to show what he can do in a Man United shirt but he showcased his skills last night in setting up goals for Ibrahimovic and Martial.
- Anthony Martial was top scorer last season with 17 but has been a shadow of that player in this campaign struggling to get in the side. He will hope his two goals last night will get him back on track.
- The bigger worry for the Hammers is their next two league games are against Arsenal and Liverpool with them standing just a point above the relegation zone.
- Having said that it was a special night for Ashley Fletcher, scoring at the club where he spent seven years coming through the ranks, but without making a first team appearance.
- Fletcher, 21, was offered a new contract in the summer at Old Trafford but turned it down to move to West Ham for more first team chance.
BIG PICTURE
NEXT FIVE MATCHES
Man Utd
04 Dec - Everton (A) - PL
08 Dec - Zorya Luhansk (A) - PL
11 Dec - Tottenham (H) - PL
14 Dec - Crystal Palace (A) - PL
17 Dec - West Brom (A) - PL
WEST HAM
03 Dec - Arsenal (H) - PL
11 Dec - Liverpool (A) - PL
14 Dec - Burnley (H) - PL
17 Dec - Hull (H) - PL
26 Dec - Swansea (A) - PL
SOCIAL SAYS
DREAM TEAM RATINGS
MANCHESTER UNITED: De Gea 5, Valencia 7, Jones 7, Rojo 8, Shaw 6 (Blind 45, 6), Carrick 6, Herrera 7, Mkhitaryan 8 (Rashford 90, 6), Rooney 7, Martial 8 (Schweinsteiger 86, 6), Ibrahimovic 9.
Subs not used: Mata, Lingard, Romero, Schneiderlin.
Booked: Valencia, Rooney.
Goals: Ibrahimovic (2), Martial (2)
WEST HAM: Adrian 6, Ogbonna 6, Reid 6, Kouyate 6, Cresswell 6 (Masuaku 45, 6), Feghouli 6, Obiang 6, Fernandes 6, Payet 6 (Zaza 78, 5), Antonio 5 (Lanzini 58, 6), Fletcher 6.
Subs not used: Randolph, Nordtveit, Noble, Collins.
Booked: Obiang.
Goals: Fletcher.
STAR MAN: Zlatan Ibrahimovic 9.
WHAT THEY SAID
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho told MUTV: "More of the same, in terms of the quality of our football, the wya we dominated the game the way we controlled a good opponent.
"The beuty of our attacking is the same match after match but today with goals."
West Ham boss Slaven Bilic told the club website: "We can’t have a slow start against them because they are very good when they are one up. They have those kind of players.
"After the slow start, we recovered and looked good but you can’t do the same. And we did. They totally deserved it then after that. You just can’t have that kind of a start in a game like this."