Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said Manchester United have “no excuses” for failure as they look to change his losing record in semi-finals.
United host Manchester City on Wednesday in a repeat of last season’s League Cup last-four clash, albeit with the difference that it is only a one-legged tie now.
But United made the wrong sort of history as they became the first team to lose a FA Cup, League Cup and European semi-final in the same season.
Now Solskjaer has urged his side to take the next step and win the first trophy of his reign, which he feels would lead to more silverware.
He said: “We’re confident and going into the game in good form. There are no excuses. We’ve developed a lot in the last 12 months since the last semi in the Carabao Cup.
"It’s not just learning to win semis, we've also earned the right to feel we can go all the way with our performances. For this team getting our hands on a trophy would be a very big step. You play football to win and to get your hands on trophies. It gives you the hunger to get more.”
Besides City, United were beaten by Chelsea in the last four of the FA Cup and then Sevilla in the Europa League but Solskjaer feels his side have progressed since then.
“When you get to a semi you've done a lot of good work to get there and you play better opposition,” he said. “We've improved immensely in a year since the last semi and even from when we were in Europe in August.”
Solskjaer hopes the fixture list will give his side an added advantage. Whereas City faced Chelsea on Sunday, United beat Aston Villa on Friday.
“Hopefully, we have got more fresh legs,” he said. While City are expected to be without six players who tested positive for coronavirus, United’s only absentees are the injured Phil Jones and the suspended Edinson Cavani.
They drew 0-0 at Old Trafford in the Premier League in December, a match when neither team showed much adventure. "The last game didn't have the X-factor, maybe because they were set up to counter-attack as well," Solskjaer said.
However, City were dominant in last January’s League Cup semi-final when they went 3-0 up in 38 minutes, in effect booking their passage to Wembley then. City played without a specialist striker then and Pep Guardiola revived his tactic of using a false nine to great effect at Stamford Bridge.
“You never know what kind of system he is going to come up with, but you've got to defend really well against City,” Solskjaer reflected. “City weren’t as possession-based against Chelsea, they were more counter-attacking. We’ve got to be aware of that as well as the possession game.”
But much of United’s threat can come from the counter-attack and it helped them beat City three times last season. Solskjaer added: “Away in the league, when we could have scored four or five in a 10- or 15-minute period, our counter-attacks were out of this world.’
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Chelsea 1 Manchester City 3: player ratings
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CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy, 5 - Nothing the keeper could do about Gundogan’s accurate opener but could perhaps have forced the issue more against Raheem Sterling as the England man picked his spot before firing against the post, allowing de Bruyne to tap home the rebound. AP -
Cesar Azpilicueta, 4 - A really poor day as the Spaniard was regularly beaten to the punch by a combination of Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne, while his poor positional play was exposed. Getty -
Kurt Zouma, 5 - Another Chelsea defender who couldn’t live with the verve of City’s front three and it was a harsh reality check for a defender who has grown into his role at Stamford Bridge. AFP -
Thiago Silva, 4 - The Brazilian has been superb since signing from Paris St Germain, but this was easily his worst display in a Chelsea shirt. The centre back failed to deny the space required by Gundogan to squeeze home the opener and failed to organise his defence during the visitors’ first-half blitz. AP -
Ben Chilwell, 5 - Arguably his side’s best defender on the day and he did get forward during fleeting moments on the attack, but the former Leicester man still had his fair share of tricky moments against Raheem Sterling. PA -
Mateo Kovacic, 4 - Twice gave possession away in dangerous areas and can count himself lucky that the ruthless City forwards didn’t punish him for it. Booked for a poor tackle on Kevin de Bruyne and replaced for the final 20 minutes or so by Kai Havertz. Getty -
N’Golo Kante, 3 - A horrible day at the office that saw him regularly chasing shadows as City ran the Chelsea midfield ragged. His poor pass sparked a slick City counter that resulted in the visitors’ third and his lack of awareness could have cost his side more. Replaced by Billy Gilmour just after the hour. AP -
Mason Mount, 6 - Found it tough to get a foothold in the game as City took control of all areas within the opening 15 minutes, but a bursting run and cross was rewarded with a good finish by substitute Callum Hudson-Odoi in the closing stages. AP -
Hakim Ziyech, 4 - A game that largely passed the Moroccan by, with his only meaningful moment being an indirect free kick on the edge of the box that was charged down by the City defence. Replaced by Callum Hudson-Odoi in the 64th minute and will be lucky to start the next game. Getty -
Christian Pulisic, 5 - Like Ziyech, the winger failed to really get into the game, although not through any real fault of his own. He failed to pull the trigger when he worked the ball well with Timo Werner in the first half, instead choosing to hold on and wasting the chance. AP -
Timo Werner, 5 - He’s been waiting months to get his chance in a more central role, but the German still looks like a player who is low on confidence and he didn’t ever look like troubling City goalkeeper Zack Steffen. Getty -
SUBS: Callum Hudson-Odoi (Ziyech, 64’), 6 - Busted a gut to get on the end of a low Mason Mount cross to slot home for 3-1. AFP -
Billy Gilmour (Kante, 64’), 5 - The game was long gone by the time the young Scot was introduced. Getty -
Kai Havertz (Kovacic, 77’) N/R - Never looked like inspiring a late comeback. AP -
MANCHESTER CITY RATINGS: Zack Steffen, 6 - A bizarre moment saw the Premier League debutant pick up a Rodri backpass early on, but that was the only incident of note in a quiet afternoon between the sticks. AP -
Joao Cancelo, 7 - Could have faced a tough time against the combination of Christian Pulisic and Ben Chilwell on the Chelsea left, but the Portugal international was excellent and didn’t give the pair a sniff. PA -
John Stones, 7 - The former Everton man is clearly enjoying his City renaissance and didn’t put a foot wrong against opponents who struggled for creative spark in the final third. Getty -
Ruben Dias, 7 - Had to be alert against a couple of Chelsea set pieces in the first half but it was an otherwise leisurely afternoon for the big-money signing from Benfica. AP -
Oleksandr Zinchenko, 7 - With City maintaining their width via Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling didn’t see a great deal of the Ukrainian going forward, but he had an easy time of it against Hakim Ziyech. Getty -
Rodri, 8 - An excellent afternoon’s work in which he quickly strangled any life out of a Chelsea midfield. The City No 16 stroked the ball across the pitch with ease and kept a lid on any glimmer of a Chelsea fightback. EPA -
Bernardo Silva, 7 - Had moments where he could have got his name on the scoresheet, only for some last-ditch Chelsea defending to prevent a more significant impact. Booked for a poor challenge on Pulisic late on. Getty -
Ilkay Gundogan, 8 - A fabulous turn and finish opened the scoring whilst making Thiago Silva look like an amateur and the German was the best player on the pitch in the first half. AFP -
Phil Foden, 8 - The youngster has been starved of minutes recently but he took his goal brilliantly as he glided the ball home with a first-time effort, and on another day he could have had a couple more to his name. Brought off for the final few minutes and replaced by Riyad Mahrez. EPA -
Raheem Sterling, 7 - Unfortunate not to score when he rounded Mendy and hit the post with a curling effort despite plenty of attention from Chelsea defenders, but the loose ball fell to de Bruyne, who tapped home. Getty -
Kevin de Bruyne, 8 - Playing in a less familiar role as the central focal point of a front three, the Belgian was the beneficiary of some good fortune when Sterling’s effort cannoned off the post, allowing for an easy tap-in, and his movement caused the home back four a whole host of problems. AP -
SUBS: Fernandinho (Gundogan, 75’), N/R – Slotted into midfield to help comfortably see the game out. AP -
Sergio Aguero (de Bruyne, 86’), N/R – Too late for him to add to his impressive ten goals against Chelsea. AP -
Riyad Mahrez (Foden, 86’), N/R – Unable to get into the game. AP
