As the saying goes “when one door closes, a window opens.” Man United’s loss last night could mean future gain.
With both Arsenal and Chelsea crashing out of the League Cup on Tuesday, Manchester United saw their chances of winning the tournament ramp up. Having already advanced to the round of 16, top flight teams remaining in the tourney were dropping like flies.
The potential for a trophy, albeit a small one, seemed greater. However, Louis van Gaal was concerned about the increasing fatigue of his players, saying that they had entered “the red zone,” so he decided to rest quite a few of his starters.
Van Gaal made the right choice in resting his first-teamers for the bigger battles ahead, but it ended up costing the club, as they were eliminated last night.
Man United joined the “Premier League club losing to smaller side” as Middlesbrough beat them 3-1 on penalty kicks in extra time. With tonight’s scoring drought, plus that yawn fest which was the Manchester Derby, that’s now 238 minutes and counting of score less Manchester United action.
However, the elimination might not be all bad news, as football pundit Jamie Carragher believes the loss might help the the side be refreshed for the Premier League, and help their title chances.
“We’d all say Man City are the team we all fancy to win the title but I think for United and Arsenal it may not be the end of the world,” he said on Sky Sports. h/t Manchester Evening News
“They’re the two sides now you look at who could sneak the title from City. If [Sergio] Aguero was out for a long time, if [David] Silva was out for long time.
“Those three weeks that you get [from not playing in the Capital One Cup], the training sessions with the manager, fresh for the weekend. It could actually help them in the long run.
“They’ll be disappointed going out, the chance of a trophy gone, but in terms of the long run for the Champions League and trying to put pressure on Man City, it could actually work in their favor.”
The next round of League Cup action for Man United would have been bookended by UEFA Champions League matches. So that’s quite the workload. Maybe this is a break?
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye. He also appears regularly on numerous television and radio talk shows all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone.
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