With goals from Christian Eriksen and Marcus Rashford, Manchester United defeated Burnley 2-0 to go smoothly to the EFL Cup quarterfinals on Vincent Kompany's return to Old Trafford.
The legendary Kompany of Manchester City frequently defeated United in derbies, but on Wednesday, his return to Manchester United as manager of Burnley resulted in a defeat in the fourth round.
In United's first game after the World Cup, Rashford extended the lead in the second half after Eriksen had given the team the lead in the 27th minute. Burnley, the league's top team, had several impressive plays but was penalized for squandering opportunities as Erik Ten Hag's team advanced to Thursday's round of 16.
Alejandro Garnacho missed a wonderful opportunity in the eighth minute as Bailey Peacock-Farrell sprinted out to stop a tame finish following Bruno Fernandes' sharp delivery. Aaron Wan-Bissaka received another defense-splitting diagonal pass from Fernandes, who then acrobatically hooked across for Eriksen to score a well-deserving opening goal.
A curling Manuel Benson shot required a deft stop from Martin Dubravka, who then nearly scored himself from the next corner before Antony Martial was denied at the other end by Peacock-Farrell.
After the break, Scott McTominay misfired a promising effort, but Rashford increased United's lead with a strong run that concluded with a drilled strike into the bottom-left corner. Burnley's poor performance ensured that the Clarets had no chance of coming back, as Darko Churlinov wastefully prodded wide on the counter-attack and Ashley Barnes blasted over.
UNITED HAS STRUGGLED AFTER THE WORLD CUP
Before the World Cup break, United finished the first half of the Premier League season strongly to sit three points behind fourth-placed Tottenham, who have played one more game.
Ten Hag's team continued where they left off, even though they occasionally lacked conviction in the first half, as United advanced from a sixth consecutive EFL Cup match against Burnley.
Prior to this victory, United had lost three of its previous four home matches in the competition. Despite this win, Ten Hag will continue to call for improvement because the Premier League will soon resume with more difficult tests.
AFTER RONALDO LEFT, FERNANDES EMERGED AS A STAR.
Before Cristiano Ronaldo's contract was terminated in November, concerns were raised about Fernandes' influence at United alongside his Portugal teammate.
In his first game without Cristiano Ronaldo, playmaker Fernandes excelled, generating three chances, the most in the game, including the precise ball that set up Wan Bissaka's assist in the first half.
DEPUTY DUBRAVKA'S ARGUMENT IS WEAK
Given Dubravka's lackluster performance, David de Gea is still Ten Hag's first choice, and the Spain goalkeeper may not be overly concerned about losing that position.
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