Manchester United’s chance of winning a cup treble this season remains alive after they overcame Blackburn Rovers in the #FACup at Ewood Park. The Reds went behind when Danny Graham fired past Sergio Romero, but Marcus Rashford equalised for the visitors after rounding ‘keeper Jason Steele and tapping into an empty net.
#Zlatan Ibrahimovic came off the bench and scored the winner for United when he latched onto Paul #Pogba’s through ball and tucked the ball into the bottom corner.
The Swede, who signed last summer for free, took his goal tally to 24 for the season with that strike and has been a revelation – proving many people wrong.
Reds have chance to win EFL Cup on Sunday
Now Jose Mourinho’s side have to turn their attention to the Europa League tie with Saint-Etienne and close out the tie – which they lead 3-0 from the first-leg. However, they have a chance to win the first piece of silverware available this coming Sunday when they take on Southampton at Wembley Stadium in the EFL Cup. The Reds saw off Northampton Town before beating rivals Manchester City in the Fourth Round.
A thumping 4-1 victory over West Ham United at Old Trafford was followed by a 3-2 aggregate scoreline against Hull City in the semi-finals to set up the showdown with Southampton in the capital. This is the perfect chance for Mourinho to get his first piece of silverware during his reign with United – and his first since 2012, where he won La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup with Real Madrid.
Manchester United could also win FA Cup and Europa League
As mentioned, there is a distinct possibility that Manchester United could win a cup treble this season – with the Reds still being in the Europa League and the FA Cup. Since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, United's greatest ever manager, United had struggled until recently, with the side having lost only once in their last 24 games.
Mourinho’s side ended up finishing second behind Turkish side Fenerbahce in the group stage – and they were drawn against Saint-Etienne of Ligue 1 in the Last 32. In the first leg United came out convincing winners, with the second leg being played on Wednesday night at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
Some of Europe’s premiere sides remain in the competition with the likes of Shakhtar Donetsk, Fiorentina, Roma and Athletic Bilbao all taking a first-leg lead into the return leg of their respective fixtures. The other competition is arguably the most prestigious of all, the FA Cup, and United had to come from behind against Blackburn to ensure their name was in the hat for the quarter-finals – a visit to Stamford Bridge to face Premier League-leaders Chelsea awaits the Reds.
The other teams remaining are Premier League sides Middlesbrough, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, who have to replay their Fifth Round game against Huddersfield. League One side Millwall saw off Leicester City and non-league Lincoln City edged out Burnley – a side 81-places above them. Arsenal and the lowest ranked team left, Sutton United, face off later tonight. It could be quite a memorable year for the Reds, not looking too far ahead, and winning the Europa League, and a piece of silverware, may be the more appealing way to qualify for next seasons #Champions League – compared to finishing fourth.