Manchester United booked their place in the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle United at Wembley with a 2-0 win against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on Wednesday evening.
Leading 3-0 from the first-leg at the City Ground last week, United, who last won the competition back in 2017, sealed their place in the final, courtesy of goals from Anthony Martial and Fred, sealing a 5-0 aggregate victory. It means that manager Erik ten Hag has the chance to deliver the club's first trophy in almost six years less than a year after he accepted the job.
United have not won a major trophy since beating Ajax 2-0 in the final of the Europa League in May 2017. They last reached a domestic cup final in 2018, losing 1-0 to Chelsea in the FA Cup final.
READ MORE: United player ratings vs Forest
Ten Hag, unlike most managers of the Premier League's elite clubs, has refused to use the Carabao Cup as a competition to rotate his pack and blood youngsters into the fold. He has taken every round seriously and it has resulted in United being within one win of ending their trophy drought.
The 2-0 win over Forest on Wednesday night saw Ten Hag, despite his side boasting a 3-0 advantage from the first-leg, continue that trend, naming a star-studded line-up. It means those who started the second-leg will be determined to start the final.
However, deadline day recruit Marcel Sabitzer, who watched the win against Forest from the stands, will also be targeting a starting berth at Wembley, by which point he will have hoped to settled into life in England and become accustomed with Ten Hag's way of playing and his new teammates. Should he feature in the final and United win it, he will, like everyone else who has played a part in the Reds' run to the final, however big or small, be entitled to a winner's medal.
But while that is completely fair, EFL rules state that the winning club will only receive 30 medals, which are to be shared among both playing staff and coaching staff. United have already used 26 players in the Carabao Cup this season, including former loanee Martin Dubravka, who will likely be in the Newcastle matchday squad at Wembley, meaning there will be hardly any medals to be shared among the coaching staff, especially if Sabitzer takes the tally of players used to 27.
United, however, should they win the final, will be allowed to secure additional medals, but 'at the cost of the club'.
The rule governing the distribution of medals at the final states: "In addition to the Cup, the Management Committee shall present 30 souvenirs to the winning Club in the Final Tie and 30 souvenirs to the losing Club. Additional souvenirs may be presented with the consent of the Management Committee but shall be at the cost of the requesting Club."
With that in mind, in the event of United winning the final and Sabitzer featuring, the club may have only literally a handful of medals to present to staff, such as Ten Hag and his coaching team. Everyone would have played their part in delivering the trophy, meaning it would be only fair to reward everyone accordingly.
With that said, United may be forced into purchasing more medals to distribute to everyone involved in the achievement.
Win a pair of tickets to the Premier League or Women's Super League match of your choosing! Enter by clicking here!
READ NEXT:
