The 2017 EFL Cup Final was the final

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

match of the 2016–17 EFL Cup that took place on 26 February 2017 between

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

and

Southampton Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

in London, England. The final was the first League Cup final contested under the "EFL Cup" name following the renaming of The Football League to the

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

(EFL). As winners, Manchester United initially qualified for the third qualifying round of the

2017–18 UEFA Europa League The 2017–18 UEFA Europa League was the 47th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 9th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. The final was played at the Parc Olympiqu ...

, but entered the group stage of the

2017–18 UEFA Champions League The 2017–18 UEFA Champions League was the 63rd season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 26th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. The final was pl ...

instead by virtue of their

2016–17 UEFA Europa League The 2016–17 UEFA Europa League was the 46th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the eighth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. The final was played between Ajax and ...

victory, passing the League Cup berth to the highest-placed Premier League team who had not already qualified for Europe, seventh-placed Everton. The match was Manchester United's ninth final in the League Cup, having won in their last three appearances and four overall, and Southampton's second, having lost their only other League Cup final in

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

. It was the second cup final played between the two sides, following the

1976 FA Cup Final The 1976 FA Cup Final was the 95th final of the FA Cup. It took place on 1 May 1976 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between Manchester United and Southampton. United had finished third in the First Division that season, and were strong fav ...

, when Southampton – then of the Second Division – beat First Division Manchester United 1–0.

Route to the final

Manchester United

Manchester United, as a Premier League club involved in the

, started the competition in the third round where they were drawn away at EFL League One team Northampton Town. At

Sixfields Stadium Sixfields Stadium is a 7,798-capacity all-seater sports stadium in the Sixfields area on the west side of Northampton, England. It has been the home ground of Northampton Town Football Club following their move from the County Ground in Octob ...

Manchester United won 3–1 with goals from

Michael Carrick Michael Carrick (born 28 July 1981) is an English professional football manager and former player who is currently head coach of Middlesbrough. He is one of the most decorated English footballers of all time and is best known for his 12-year ...

Ander Herrera Ander Herrera Agüera (; born 14 August 1989) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Athletic Bilbao, on loan from Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain. He began his career at Real Zaragoza, before moving ...

and

Marcus Rashford Marcus Rashford (born 31 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Manchester United and the England national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his explosive ath ...

. In the fourth round they were drawn against

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

rivals

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The two ...

at home. At

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after We ...

, Manchester United won 1–0 due to a goal from

Juan Mata Juan Manuel Mata García (born 28 April 1988) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for Turkish Süper Lig club Galatasaray S.K. (football), Galatasaray. He mostly plays as a central attacking mid ...

. In the quarter-final they drew fellow Premier League team

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium ...

at Old Trafford, where they progressed 4–1 due to two goals each from

Zlatan Ibrahimović Zlatan Ibrahimović (, ; born 3 October 1981) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a striker for club AC Milan and the Sweden national team. Ibrahimović is renowned for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, powerful long-range sh ...

and

Anthony Martial Anthony Jordan Martial (; born 5 December 1995) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Manchester United and the France national team. After playing youth football for Les Ulis, Martial began his p ...

despite manager José Mourinho serving a touchline ban. In the two legged semi-final, they drew fellow Premier League

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's ...

. Manchester United won the first leg at Old Trafford 2–0 due to goals from Mata and

Marouane Fellaini Marouane Fellaini-Bakkioui (born 22 November 1987) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chinese club Shandong Taishan. Born in Etterbeek to Moroccan parents, Fellaini played youth football for Anderlecht, R.A.E.C. ...

and lost the second leg 2–1 at the

KCOM Stadium The MKM Stadium (also known as the Hull City Stadium due to UEFA sponsorship regulations) is a multi-purpose facility in the city of Kingston upon Hull, England. The stadium was previously called the KC Stadium, but was renamed the KCOM Stadi ...

despite a

Paul Pogba Paul Labile Pogba (born 15 March 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays for club Juventus and the France national team. He operates primarily as a central midfielder, but can be deployed as a left winger, attacking midfielder, ...

goal but progressed to the final 3–2 on aggregate.

Southampton

Southampton, as a

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

team involved in the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League, started the competition in the third round. They were drawn against fellow Premier League team

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

at home. At

St Mary's Stadium St Mary's Stadium is an all-seater association football, football stadium in Southampton, England, which has been the home stadium of Premier League club Southampton F.C. since 2001. The stadium has a capacity of 32,384 and is currently the lar ...

, they won 2–0 with goals from Charlie Austin and Jake Hesketh. In the next round they drew Premier League

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

at home. At St Mary's Stadium, they won 1–0 due to a goal from Sofiane Boufal. In the quarter final they were drawn away at Premier League

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

. At the

Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. It has a current seated capacit ...

, Southampton won 2–0 with goals from

Jordy Clasie Jordy Clasie (; born 27 June 1991) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Eredivisie club AZ Alkmaar and for the Dutch national team. Club career Early career Clasie arrived at the youth Feyenoord Academy (Varkenoord ...

and Ryan Bertrand. In the two-legged semi final, Southampton drew fellow Premier League

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

. Southampton won the first leg 1–0 due to a goal from

Nathan Redmond Nathan Daniel Jerome Redmond (born 6 March 1994) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for Süper Lig club Beşiktaş. Redmond began his career as a youngster with Birmingham City, his hometown club. He made h ...

and won 1–0 away at

Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 189 ...

with a goal from

Shane Long Shane Patrick Long (born 22 January 1987) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a striker for EFL Championship club Reading and the Republic of Ireland national team. He also played hurling for the Tipperary county team in his early ...

to progress to the final 2–0 on aggregate. Southampton are the second team to reach a League Cup final without conceding any goals, after Tottenham Hotspur managed the feat in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., Un ...

. This would be their first major final since the

2003 FA Cup Final The 2003 FA Cup Final was the 122nd final of the FA Cup, the world's oldest domestic football cup competition. The final took place on Saturday 17 May 2003 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, in front of a crowd of 73,726. It was the third c ...

. Southampton fans celebrated reaching the final by painting white stripes on

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

red

pillar box A pillar box is a type of free-standing post box. They are found in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories, and, less commonly, in many members of the Commonwealth of Nations such as Cyprus, India, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Malta, New ...

es, mirroring the 2012 Olympic gold post box campaign, though Royal Mail viewed this as vandalism and said that they would restore the pillar boxes to their original colour.

Match

Summary

Manolo Gabbiadini Manolo Gabbiadini (; born 26 November 1991) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Serie A club Sampdoria and the Italy national team. Gabbiadini began his professional career with Atalanta, where he made his Serie A ...

had the ball in the net early in the game after a low cross from the right by Cédric, but the perfectly good goal was controversially disallowed for offside.

opened the scoring in the 19th minute, with a free kick to the left of Southampton goalkeeper

Fraser Forster Fraser Gerard Forster (born 17 March 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. Forster started his career with Newcastle United and had brief loan spells with Stockport Co ...

awarded following a foul by

Oriol Romeu Oriol Romeu Vidal (; born 24 September 1991) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for La Liga side Girona. Romeu began his career at Barcelona, playing mainly in their reserves. In 2011, he joined Chelsea fo ...

. Despite the Saints enjoying a spell of pressure on the United goal,

Jesse Lingard Jesse Ellis Lingard (born 15 December 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for club Nottingham Forest and the England national team. He has won the UEFA Europa League, FA Cup, FA Communit ...

doubled the lead in the 38th minute with a low right foot shot to the right corner of the net from just inside the penalty area. Gabbiadini brought Southampton back into the game on the stroke of half-time, converting

James Ward-Prowse James Michael Edward Ward-Prowse (born 1 November 1994) is an English professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for club Southampton and the England national team. Originally a member of Southampton's youth teams, Ward-Pro ...

's cross from the right from three yards out. After the break, Gabbiadini equalised for the Saints when he flicked the ball low into the net with his left foot, it was his fifth goal in his first three games, as the Saints continued to dominate possession and chances on goal. The Saints continued having chances to take the lead throughout the second half, as

Dušan Tadić Dušan Tadić ( sr-Cyrl, Душан Тадић, ; born 20 November 1988) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder and captains both Eredivisie club Ajax and the Serbia national team. Tadić spent hi ...

and Ward-Prowse saw efforts saved by United goalkeeper

David de Gea David de Gea Quintana (born 7 November 1990) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Manchester United. During the mid-2010s, he was widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. Born in Madrid ...

, and

hit the post with a header from a corner, but with three minutes remaining Ibrahimović scored his second with a close range header after a cross from

on the right.

Details

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Football League Cup Final 2016

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

EFL Cup Final Cup Final 2017 sports events in London Events at Wembley Stadium February 2017 sports events in the United Kingdom League Cup Final 2017 League Cup Final 2017