Manchester United vs Southampton - as it happened: Zlatan Ibrahimovic's late goal seals EFL Cup victory
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Manchester United step out at Wembley against Southampton on Sunday looking to avenge the FA Cup final defeat of 1976 and, far more importantly, win their first major trophy under the Portuguese.
Last season's FA Cup is the only major success United have tasted since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement, but things seem to be going in the right direction under Louis van Gaal's successor.
Southampton were able to head to Spain thanks to a two-week break following their thumping 4-0 win over Sunderland. United, by contrast, have crammed in three games in that time in both the Europa League and the FA Cup.
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Key information…
Manchester United and Southampton meet in the final of the EFL Cup at Wembley on Sunday 26 February, with the game kicking off at 4.30pm.
The game will be shown live on Sky Sports 1, with the programme beginning at 3.45pm.
Predicted line-ups…
Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Shaw, Blind, Bailly, Valencia; Pogba, Herrera; Martial, Rooney, Lingard; Ibrahimovic.
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Forster; Targett, Van Dijk, Yoshida, Cedric; Romeu, Davis; Redmond, Ward-Prowse, Tadic; Gabbiadini.
Best stat…
From next season until 2020, the competition will be known as the Carabao Cup after a new sponsorship agreement was reached. The previous seven sponsors are Capital One, the Milk Marketing Board, Littlewoods, Rumblelows, Coca-Cola, Worthington and Carling.
It’s a big game for…
Jose Mourinho: The EFL Cup, in its various sponsored guises, has offered a route to trophies for Mourinho ever since his arrival into English football.
It brought the 'Special One' his first success having taken over at Chelsea for his first stint, and he collected another winners' medal having returned to Stamford Bridge.
Could he do the same thing at United? With the Premier League title seemingly out of reach, this could still prove to be the first in a hat-trick of trophies with the Red Devils still also alive in the FA Cup and Europa League.
Player to watch…
Manolo Gabbiadini: Southampton's £15million January signing from Napoli has hit the ground running.
Gabbiadini came in from Napoli with Puel desperate to add a natural goalscorer to his ranks and he has hit three goals in his first two Premier League appearances.
He could instantly write his name into the history books of Southampton if he can score the goals that fire the club to the EFL Cup at United's expense.
Form guide…
Manchester United: DWWWWW
Southampton: LWLLLW
Odds…
Manchester United to win: 5/6
Southampton to win: 29/10
Draw: 5/2
The supporters have started to arrive at Wembley Stadium...
We expect team news very shortly.
Team news!
Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Valencia, Bailly, Smalling (c), Marcos Rojo; Ander Herrera, Pogba; Lingard, Mata, Martial; Ibrahimovic.
Southampton: (4-2-3-1): Forster; Cedric, Yoshida, Stephens, Bertrand; Romeu, Davis; Ward-Prowse, Tadic, Redmond; Gabbiadini.
They lost that final to a decisive late goal from Nottingham Forest's Tony Woodcock.
Can Southampton win their first League Cup today?
Fans of Southampton and Manchester United are making a late move down Wembley Way.
But Jose Mourinho is out to prove that he is still the man for the big occasion.
After the League Cup trophy makes its way on to the pitch, the two teams follow suit to a magnificent backdrop of red and white.
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