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Man Utd reach EFL Cup final: How it affects the PL and FPL

By Ben Pearce 1 Feb 2023
Anthony Martial

Red Devils' fixture against Brentford will be rescheduled as it clashes with trip to Wembley

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Erik ten Hag is one match away from securing silverware in his debut season after leading Manchester United to the EFL Cup final.

The Red Devils beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 at Old Trafford in the second leg of the semi-finals, wrapping up a 5-0 victory on aggregate.

Anthony Martial, returning from injury, came off the bench to open the scoring in the 73rd minute, and Fred struck three minutes later.

United will face Newcastle United in the final, aiming to win the EFL Cup for the sixth time. It was the last domestic trophy they lifted, in 2017 under Jose Mourinho.

The EFL Cup final will be played on Sunday 26 February.

As a result, Man Utd's Premier League fixture at home against Brentford, which was scheduled for 13:30 GMT on the same day, will be postponed. The new date for that match is yet to be determined.

Blank Gameweek in FPL

Fantasy Premier League managers must now react to the fact that both Man Utd and Brentford are without a fixture in Gameweek 25.

That is particularly significant given the current rush to bring in Man Utd stars for their Double Gameweek 22 at home against Crystal Palace and against Leeds United.

Bruno Fernandes (£9.9m), Luke Shaw (£5.3m) and Marcus Rashford (£7.2m) are the three most-popular recruits ahead of Friday's 18:30 GMT deadline.

See: Top transfers for GW22

Meanwhile, Brentford's Ivan Toney (£7.7m) is the sixth highest-scoring player in FPL this season, selected in 30 per cent of squads, and Bees defender Ben Mee (£4.8m) is owned by 10 per cent of managers.

Newcastle and Brighton & Hove Albion will also blank in Gameweek 25 due to the Magpies' participation in the EFL Cup final.

See: Impact of Newcastle reaching EFL Cup final

Both EFL Cup finalists are currently in the top four.

If they both finish the season in the top five, the UEFA Europa Conference League playoff place reserved for the EFL Cup winners will instead will go to the next-highest ranked team not qualified for UEFA competitions in the Premier League.

Currently that is sixth place, but that may change depending on who win the FA Cup.

The race for Europe

Position Pos Club Played Pl GD Points Pts
1 Man City MCI 38 +61 89
2 Arsenal ARS 38 +45 84
3 Man Utd MUN 38 +15 75
4 Newcastle NEW 38 +35 71
5 Liverpool LIV 38 +28 67
6 Brighton BHA 38 +19 62
7 Aston Villa AVL 38 +5 61
8 Spurs TOT 38 +7 60
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