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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Tyrone Marshall

Erik ten Hag has changed the belief in the Manchester United squad

Four days after returning from Wembley the Manchester United fans sang about going back there. It had been a long time since their last successful visit to the national stadium, but the return might be a matter of weeks.

A breathless finale against West Ham secured an FA Cup quarter-final and kept dreams alive of a trophy-laden season. The Premier League remains a distant dream, but a domestic cup double is plausible and the Europa League is very winnable.

United have already pocketed the Carabao Cup and although that triumph at the weekend initially looked like derailing them in the FA Cup, they showed the spirit and resilience that Erik ten Hag is taking so much pride in.

READ MORE: Garnacho has added something else to his game to please Ten Hag

With 13 minutes to go they were heading out of the competition and only really got going 10 minutes earlier. But shortly after Casemiro had a goal disallowed they did level through Nayef Aguerd. Then it felt inevitable they would find a way.

That's because that is exactly what they've been doing this season. They don't always play well and they don't always fire for 90 minutes, but the winning habit has well and truly taken hold. They suddenly believe they can win games from every position and they keep on proving it.

Vital to that is Ten Hag's ability to change games. He gradually altered the flow of this one with his substitutions. Bringing Casemiro on at half-time added more control to the midfield. Lisando Martinez and Marcus Rashford added bite to the performance after going behind and that latter change meant shifting Bruno Fernandes to the right, a position he excelled on. Even Fred came on and scored again.

But the ending that brought Old Trafford to its feet hadn't looked likely for much of the night. It had begun with Harry Maguire and Fernandes breaking away from pre-match preparations to collect the trophy they had lifted at Wembley on Sunday.

Ten Hag had said after the game that attention would turn immediately to the visit of the Hammers and the chance to progress in the FA Cup, but this was perhaps a sign that they were lingering on Sunday's success. It had been a long time since this club lifted a trophy and it was right to celebrate it back at Old Trafford, but it could have been done earlier than a minute or two before kick-off and with players who weren't in the starting XI.

That and the raft of changes made by Ten Hag summed up an initially casual approach to this cup tie. There were six alterations to the side and too many key players were out of the picture.

The build-up from the back was far less fluid without Martinez and Raphael Varane. The midfield felt clunky without the smooth passing of Casemiro and the attack lacked bite without Rashford. Starting all of them might have been impossible but Ten Hag should have learnt from 61 minutes at Leeds last month that playing neither Martinez nor Casemiro affects how his team move the ball.

It was a disjointed first-half performance that got worse the longer it went on. Only a David de Gea save from Michail Antonio kept United level.

Casemiro came on at the break was one of the guilty parties for switching off ahead of West Ham's goal. It was a sloppy bit of play, but it did at least provoke United to wake from their slumber. They suddenly opened the game up and started to pose West Ham some problems.

Denied an equaliser when Casemiro headed in from an offside position, they did finally level when Aguerd headed Bruno Fernandes' corner past his own goalkeeper.

Once they were level, it felt inevitable United would win it without the need for extra-time. They continued to up the pressure on the West Ham goal and even as the clock ticked it felt like the dam would burst. That is partly because it has happened so many times already this season.

Alejandro Garnacho curled in a stunning goal and then Fred slammed home another for his increasing collection. Old Trafford rejoiced again to a 20th win in 24 games here this season. United's hunt for more silverware goes on.

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