Manchester United have been drawn against Charlton Athletic in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup, giving a huge boost to their silverware ambitions for this season.
United defeated Vincent Kompany’s Burnley 2-0 to progress to the next round of the competition.
It was a comfortable win with Christian Eriksen and Marcus Rashford finding the back of the net.
United will be delighted to see Charlton Athletic as their quarter-final opponents, considering all the other remaining teams are much stronger on paper.
The Red Devils last lifted a trophy five years back and the fans are desperate to see their side bask in the glory again.
The team selections by Erik ten Hag show that he does not tinker much with his strongest XI.
United have to seize the opportunity because winning Carabao Cup looks like their best bet to win silverware.
However, fellow quarter-finalists Manchester City and Newcastle United will pose a real threat to that ambition.
Winning the Premier League is out of reach. United still need a lot of work to put in a serious fight for the league title.
They finished second in the Europa League group stage, which forces them to compete with Barcelona in a two-legged play-off.
Winning this tournament is realistic but United will have to toil hard for it, considering the other big hitters fighting for the title.
They are just three steps away from the Carabao Cup triumph, a trophy they last lifted in 2017.
Since then, Manchester City won the competition four consecutive times (2018-2021) before Liverpool ended their streak in 2022.
Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have already exited the tournament.
Ten Hag needs to make sure that his men do not take this competition lightly. They have a great shot to win it and end United’s trophy drought.
