New Delhi: Ten-man Manchester United edged past Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 in their third round League Cup tie, courtesy of a well-taken Danny Welbeck goal.
Welbeck, in his first start of the season, was lively all night and capped an impressive performance with a lovely goal. The 18-year-old played a neat one-two with Michael Owen and finished emphatically low into the corner of Marcus Hahnemann’s goal.
The result had looked all but clear after young Brazilian left-back Fabio Da Silva was sent off for a professional foul after just half an hour had been played. The twin brother of Rafael dragged down Wolves midfielder Michael Kightly on the edge of the box after he was put through on goal.
However, Wolves never capitalised on their numerical advantage, and it was United that always looked the more likely to score.
Both sides fielded weakened teams with an eye on their respective Premier League weekend obligations.
Sir Alex Ferguson fielded a completely different XI from the one that started in the derby against Manchester City last weekend, with the likes of Gary Neville, Michael Owen, Wes Brown and Michael Carrick all making relatively rare starts.
Mick McCarthy on the other hand gave Sylvan Ebanks-Blake a chance against the club he started his career at, and partnered him up-front with giant Austrian striker Stefan Maierhofer.
United goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak came in for Ben Foster and would have hoped to have had a busier night to stake his claim for a first team spot, but did acquit himself well with a couple of smart saves to Kevin Doyle and Ebanks-Blake.
Wolves’ best chance came in the first half when none other than Ebanks-Blake only had Kuszczak to beat after a Neville error had let him in, but the striker fluffed his lines and chipped well over both the Pole and crossbar.
McCarthy’s side enjoyed the lion’s share of possession in the second half, but lacked quality in the final third to break down an unfamiliar United back line.
It was all too comfortable in the end for Ferguson’s men, who can now look forward to a fourth-round tie in continuation of their League Cup title defence.
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