EFL Cup Final: Southampton 2-3 Manchester United
Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice against Southampton as Manchester United lifts the fifth EFL Cup of its history. Ibrahimovic showed one more time during this game why he is a world class striker with a killer instinct. As the game went underway, Man Utd took a solid 2-0 lead but the opponent side was resilient and managed to level at 2-2. Then Zlatan happened and scored the game winning goal from a header at the 86th minute.
Coach Mourinho comments on winning the trophy:
On Ibrahimovic: “He won the game for us, he was outstanding. Paul Pogba was at a similar level but Zlatan was outstanding in a match where our opponent was better than us for large periods of the game”.
On the game: “They [Southampton] deserved to go to extra-time, they didn’t deserve to lose, but Zlatan made the difference and won us the cup. “I’m a bit emotional. It’s not easy to win titles so many times, it’s not easy to cope with the pressure I put myself under all of my career. It was a game I felt was difficult, so credit goes to Southampton. We have the cup in our hands but we should be playing extra-time. Winning is always special.
This game was a tricky final, Southampton are a club that is growing. They have good players, a good coach, their fans were the same number as our fans, so this was a tricky kind of final.
I am very happy, I am very happy. It is important for the fans, the club and the players. I always try to put myself in the secondary position. The reality is also important to me. I put a lot of pressure on myself. I wanted very much to win a major trophy with every club and by doing that with Manchester United, it is quite a sense of relief. It was a big target for me to win a trophy with Manchester United but the reality is we want more. My contract is long, I have two more years plus this one so hopefully I can win something more this season. I know it is difficult, but the reality is we have to fight for more.”
