Carabao Cup Journey Ends At Man Utd
Casemiro's screamer gave the hosts the lead 15 minutes in, before Alejandro Garnacho swiftly doubled it on a chilly autumnal night in the North West. Bilal El Khannouss' first goal for the Club did halve the deficit during a breathless first half, although any hope of a comeback was immediately extinguished by a deflected Bruno Fernandes free-kick and Casemiro's second of the night. Conor Coady narrowed the arrears again in first-half stoppage time – also his maiden Foxes goal – but Fernandes completed a brace on 59 minutes to keep the match beyond the visitors. Only James Justin and Caleb Okoli remained in the XI which fell to a Premier League defeat to Nottingham Forest last time out, with Steve Cooper making nine changes. By contrast, United, under the caretaker charge of their illustrious former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, went strong with a top-loaded line-up. This was their first game after the departure of Erik ten Hag and there were points to prove for several in red.
City had settled well enough into the game early on, until 15 minutes in. Jordan Ayew tested Altay Bayındır in the Red Devils’ net, while there were some decent passages of play to enthuse the travelling Blue Army up in the corner. Van Nistelrooy was beaming on the touchline shortly afterwards, though, toasting a stunning start to his temporary reign in charge. Casemiro, the five-time UEFA Champions League-winning Brazilian midfielder, was the man to get the Manchester side on the front foot. It came in some style, too, launching a laser-like hit into Danny Ward’s top left corner from 30 yards out. There was little the Foxes’ stopper could do – or indeed any goalkeeper in the world – such was the power and accuracy. Another 15 minutes would pass largely without incident, before a second for last year’s FA Cup winners. Like a flash, Diogo Dalot scampered down the right channel, fizzing an inviting delivery across the face of goal for Garnacho to apply a simple first-time finish. There were questions of offside from the away dugout but Andrew Madley was unmoved.
The Foxes needed something quickly. An excellent cross from Bobby De Cordova-Reid had to be dealt with by Bayındır, palming it away, to the angle of his penalty area. There, El Khannouss was on patrol, waiting for scraps. It was a fine finish from the Morocco international as well, gliding the outside of his boot through the ball and watching his stylish effort trickle over the line, off the far post. If this was to be foothold for the visitors – they needed to stop United from restoring their two-goal lead. Just three minutes later, though, that’s exactly what they did. There was a big slice of fortune about Fernandes’ free-kick, taking a substantial deflection off the wall, which wrong-footed Ward, but it got the Red Devils back on course for the quarter-finals. Before long, it was 4-1 as well. Casemiro initially nodded Marcus Rashford’s cross off one post and then the other – the ball bobbling the entire width of City’s goal – before the ex-Real Madrid man thrashed home the rebound.
It wasn’t going Leicester’s way, but they stayed in the contest and the night's sixth goal went to the visitors before the break. Luke Thomas’ free-kick – El Khannouss the decoy – caused issues in the 18-yard box for United. Neither Casemiro nor Dalot could clear, gifting Coady the opportunity to prod into a gaping net from close range. From down and out to back in the fight, there was reason for optimism heading into the second half. It started with another promising Leicester spell, Boubakary Soumaré heading one half-chance wide. Van Nistelrooy’s Red Devils, though, were able to ride out the mini-storm. Although Joshua Zirkzee’s powerful drive was stopped well by Ward, the Welshman was beaten by Fernandes again just before the hour, the former Sporting Lisbon man skipping round him and finishing tidily. Amad Diallo’s overhead-kick would have been a sumptuous sixth for Man Utd, while Soumaré also rattled the bar at the other end, Bayındır somehow getting a hand onto his gliding shot. Fernandes' volley on the spin later on also threatened to widen the gap. Bayındır had work to do as well, tipping substitute Stephy Mavididi's long-range arrow around the base of his near post. City will have to wait to lift their fourth League Cup, but there are other priorities this season. A return to Premier League duties now awaits the Foxes and a match of significance, too, as Cooper's men travel to Portman Road to tackle Ipswich Town.