Manchester United vs Newcastle LIVE: Carabao Cup final result and reaction as Erik ten Hag wins first trophy

If the 22 years before Eddie Howe’s arrival that Newcastle fans spent hoping for another cup final felt like an age, then the last 15 months will have hardly sunk in.

Since arriving on Tyneside, the former Bournemouth boss has breathed new life into St James’ Park. A resurgent 11th-place finish last year, flirting with European qualification this season and now, a date with destiny in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.

Newcastle’s opponents on Sunday will be the same team that cost them 24 years ago in 1999. On that day it was Teddy Sheringham - brought on after an early injury to Roy Keane - who inspired Manchester United to a 2-0 FA Cup victory.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag spoke about the opportunity to bring some silverware back to Old Trafford this week and said:

“It’s a great opportunity to get the silverware in. It’s all about that glory and honour in football. We deserve to play the final and we have a great opportunity to win the cup and we have to do everything to get it to Manchester.

"I think we are in a process where everyone believes. We go from game to game and we are looking forward to the next game. We have to follow that line to improve and be the best."

Newcastle’s number one goalkeeper, Nick Pope, will miss today’s Carabao Cup final after being sent off during the Magpies’ 2-0 Premier League defeat to Liverpool.

A moment of madness saw Pope sprint out of his penalty area and handle the ball in front of Mo Salah which earned him a straight red card and contributed to Newcastle losing their 17-game unbeaten run in the league.

With Martin Dubravka cup-tied (having already played in the Carabao Cup for Man Utd this season) and Karl Darlow out on loan, former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius is expected to start ahead of Mark Gillespie.

Newcastle are aiming for a first Wembley win since their FA Cup triumph in 1955 and Karius himself is hoping for some cup redemption after a shocking performance in the 2018 Champions League final for the Reds.

"I’m pleased the game is here. I think it’s been a difficult few weeks for us because the talk has been about it, even though it’s been two or three games down the line," Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said during his pre-match media duties.

"We’ve beaten some really good teams and been very consistent with our form. We believe the power is in our hands and it’s up to us to perform at those best levels.

"I always believe that the history, from my side, is respected but we’re trying to create new history with a new team at a new moment. We’re determined to try and do that and create some great memories for our amazing supporters.

"They’ve had a long wait for that moment and I know just from my very limited dealings with people around the city, with people that I see, the love they have for the football club. I’d love to return that love with a trophy."

Luke Shaw says Erik ten Hag has brought the feel-good factor back to Old Trafford as Manchester United attempt to end their six-year wait for a trophy in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final.

The Old Trafford giants are synonymous with success and silverware, but things have gone awry since Sir Alex Ferguson bowed out on top in 2013.

United’s only major trophies since then have been the 2016 FA Cup and the following year’s EFL Cup and Europa League successes, with the club currently on their worst trophy drought in 40 years.

Ending that wait looked a long way away last season as the ragged, rudderless Red Devils stumbled home with their lowest Premier League points tally having been knocked out of every cup by mid-March.

Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw says that competing for trophies once again is ‘everything’ especially after the years of rebuilding and missing out.

"For the position we have been in over the past years and the feeling we have inside the dressing room, it means everything," said Shaw.

"It has been such a long time since we have won a trophy. People will say it is the Carabao Cup but for us, it is massive. It is something we have been aiming for a long time; to get that winning feeling back, that feeling of winning trophies."

Having overcome injuries and a massive dip in form last year, Marcus Rashford is back with a bang for Manchester United. He has been in red-hot form this season netting a career-best 24 goals so far.

No player in Europe’s top-five leagues has more goals than him since the World Cup break.

"Football is probably 95% your mentality," Rashford said. "That gives you the baseline to perform. There are a lot of players that have ability - that’s why they play at the top level. But what sets them apart is the mentality.

"I’ve been on both sides of it. I understand the strength of it and the value. I’m concentrating a lot more on keeping myself in that headspace and it’s needed in order to win games and trophies."

For a trophy that has often struggled for its place in the game, the League Cup this year says a lot about where English football is. Its final has not had such importance in a long time.

Most immediately, a resurgent Manchester United are aiming for their first silverware in six years, a victory that would serve as a signpost for the improvement under Erik ten Hag. There is a rare excitement around the club again, as could be best seen after that Europa League win over Barcelona.

Newcastle United are waiting far longer, which makes their anticipation for this final all the greater. The club have not won any major trophy since 1955 and, unlike so many opportunities since then, the combative nature of Eddie Howe’s team ensures they do not feel like they go into this as underdogs who are dreaming rather than hope. They view it as a potential signpost in their own rise.

Newcastle will be attempting to win their first major trophy in almost 54 years, with their most recent coming in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1969.

On the domestic front they last reached a final in the 1999 FA Cup were they beaten 2-0 by Manchester United.

Will history repeat itself or can Eddie Howe’s men upset the odds?

Manchester United are the only team to still be competing on four fronts this season and could win a first piece of silverware by defeating Newcastle in the Carabao Cup today.

The Red Devils, who are in with a chance of lifting the Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League as well, have not won a trophy since 2016/17 when they claimed the EFL Cup and the Europa League under former boss Jose Mourinho.

Will Erik ten Hag’s first season in charge also bring league and cup trophies back to Old Trafford?