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MANCHESTER UNITED will host neighboring City in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals as a stiff reward for beating Everton, with Tottenham tied against semi-finalist Brentford in another derby.
Edinson Cavani struck late and majestically to trigger United’s 2-0 win at Goodison, before Anthony Martial struck the deciding point.
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That followed the Spurs winning 3-1 at Stoke on Wednesday night, when Gareth Bale, Ben Davies and Harry Kane scored to confirm their superiority.
It leaves José Mourinho’s men two wins away from ending their 12-year trophy drought.
And it means another memorable night for championship promotion hopefuls, Brentford, whose 131-year history will eventually include the semi-finals of a major tournament.
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But the shock of attention is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United landing, a direct opportunity to show that they are finally beginning to turn the balance of power in Manchester.
United already ranks third in the Premier League, three points above Pep Guardiola’s City, but lost to their neighbors at the same stage of last year’s competition.
But after moving possibly 180 minutes from the silverware, Solskjaer said: “I just saw that we drew again with City, after we played them in the semi-finals last year. Very interesting!
“We lost three semi-finals last year, and that is a step that is not enough for this club, so we want to do better this year.
“We have a great team and each victory increases our morale and confidence in ourselves.”
DRAW EFL CUP S / F
Manchester United v Man City Tottenham v Brentford
But the Norwegian added: “Sometimes a semi-final is worse than the final because it is the worst possible time to lose a match and exit the competition.”
However, he was delighted with United’s winning momentum.
And of beating Everton he said: “We know that when we defend well we have players to win the game.
“The spirit at camp is good, winning gives you energy and a boost, so we are heading towards a positive Boxing Day.”
However, the most romantic feature of the semi-finals is surely Brentford’s run.
Tuesday’s 1-0 win over Newcastle gave them four Prem scalps in the EFL Cup this season.
And the boss Thomas Frank hailed said: “It is a great step for the club and shows how far we have progressed … (We have) created a new chapter.”
The semi-finals are one-legged draws instead of the traditional double matches to ease match congestion caused by the late start of the season.
They will be played in the week beginning January 4, 2021.
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