Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes Manchester United have improved “immensely” since their three semi-final defeats last season as his side prepare to host Manchester City in the Carabao Cup last four today, Wednesday, January 6.
United are in good form heading into the one-legged semi-final at Old Trafford, having won eight of their past 10 Premier League games.
The run has moved them level with leaders Liverpool, and United could go top with their game in hand if they draw or beat Burnley next Tuesday before they then travel to Anfield on January 17.
But first, Solskjaer is focused on the immediate task of beating City to reach April’s final, and the Norwegian admits his United side are in a confident mood and have “no excuses” as they look to brush off the disappointment of semi-final exits in the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and Europa League last season.
Solskjaer said: “The next game is always important. Of course, the semi-final is a chance to get to the final and get your hands on a trophy in the next round. For this team it would be a very, very big step, getting your hands on a trophy.
“We’ve developed a lot in the last six, 12 months, from the last semi in the Carabao Cup. It’s not just learning to win semis, we’ve also earned the right to feel we can go all the way.
“You play football to win trophies, even though when you win that trophy you move on to the next one. It gives you the hunger to get more. The squad is focused, we’re ready to give it a go. We’ve prepared well for this game.”
Asked about what he has learned from the three semi-final defeats, he added: “When you get to a semi you’ve done a lot of good work to get to a semi-final. Naturally you play against better and better opposition. I think we’ve improved immensely even since [the Europa League semi-final] in August.
“It’s a step closer to get to the final. It’s easy to say ‘Have we learned?’, but it’s not about learned, it’s about some fine margins in those semi-finals.
“When you win games of football, you don’t think about whether it’s a semi-final, a league game, or a quarter-final, you just think it’s this game and you want to win it.”
