Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Manchester United delivered a 5-2 hammering of Leicester to sail into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, as life without Erik ten Hag has begun with a considerable bang.
Following the departure of Ten Hag on Monday and pursued by speculation of the impending arrival of Ruben Amorim as his successor, the interim manager is determined to maximise his time in the hot seat.
Van Nistelrooy entered the field to rapturous applause and celebrated as if he was in the Stretford End when Casemiro opened the scoring after 15 minutes.
What followed was a brand of entertaining football, countless opportunities and clinical finishing, all of which have been sorely lacking at the Theatre of Dreams.
Just like that, the goals have returned!
Alejandro Garnacho supplied the ball for the Brazilian’s sublime opener and doubled the lead following a perfect pass from the attacking Diogo Dalot.
Bilal El Khannouss struck an excellent effort to offer his side a lifeline – before a three-minute double via a Bruno Fernandes free-kick and Casemiro’s second supplied daylight between the sides.
Conor Coady fortuitously added a second for the visitors in first-half stoppage time with a staggering six goals in a frantic opening 45 minutes.
Fernandes added his second and United’s fifth shortly before the hour mark, toying with the Foxes defence before smashing home from five yards.
Old Trafford embraced a joyful evening and shared their adoration for Ruud throughout, with the pain of a solitary victory in eight outings temporarily forgotten.
With the eyes of the world sharply focused on his debut selection, the former striker deployed Manuel Ugarte alongside Casemiro in a double-pivot, showcasing four changes to the starting XI.
In contrast, Steve Cooper opted for a heavily-changed side with nine alternations from the weekend defeat to Nottingham Forest.
The reward for a comprehensive victory is another trip to London to face Ange Postecoglou and his City-conquering Tottenham Hotspur in the last eight.
Inevitably, questions will surface about the sudden shift in fortunes in front of the goal, with the same side seemingly incapable of finding the back of the net against West Ham on Sunday.
But, as frustrating as the prospect of how these issues occurred and how avoidable they may have been, it is imperative to get behind the team and their incoming leader.
One can only hope this evening’s cheer and demeanour of our multi-million-pound squad can prove a catalyst as we head into Sunday’s Premier League encounter with Chelsea.
How do you feel about Manchester United’s thumping victory against Leicester, and the draw for the next round of the Carabao Cup?
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