Manchester United, Winning Trophies and a Feeling of Inevitability

WEMBLEY STADIUM, London — The details will forever remain unclear, but what Jose Mourinho will have had to part with in his deal made with the devil on Sunday must have been pretty sizable.

Manchester United lifted the EFL Cup thanks to a 3-2 victory over Southampton to gift the Portuguese tactician his first major piece of silverware since joining the club, but even he is still pinching himself and trying to figure out how it happened.

"The man that left the table a couple of minutes a go [Claude Puel] has a reason to be really sad and disappointed," Mourinho told reporters after the game. "He did fantastic work, his team did fantastic work, and his team deserve extra time. To lose in minute 87 with very little time left I think is a bit unfair."

"They [Southampton] gave us a beautiful final."

Jests aside, this is simply the latest in a long line of examples of the Red Devils' champions DNA. For the opposing team, when faced with the task of taking on United in a cup final, an impending sense of doom settles in. It doesn't matter how well you play or how many you score; it doesn't matter if you put in the performance of your life which, in any other circumstance, would be enough to win the game.

United almost always come out on top.

Southampton started well and found a passing rhythm. Operating out of a 4-2-3-1 formation—something rarely seen this season under Puel—they were able to push their full-backs forward aggressively, place Dusan Tadic in close proximity to Manolo Gabbiadini and attack United in all three vertical thirds.

The flanks proved most profitable, with Ryan Bertrand testing Antonio Valencia and, in particular, Cedric Soares manipulating Marcos Rojo. Nathan Redmond's clever movement opened pockets of space to utilise, and his floating role during sustained periods of pressure caused United plenty of problems.

In stark contrast, Mourinho's men started extremely slowly, struggled to pass the ball and looked calamitous in defence, yet they reached the 40-minute mark with a two-goal lead. One Zlatan Ibrahimovic free-kick and one low effort from Jesse Lingard essentially represented the total sum of their attacking work, but both chances were converted in what felt like the game United have been longing for all season: one in which they actually show a clinical edge and forgo a little ball possession.

Of course, it came on the biggest stage to date.

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Adding to the feeling of "How has this happened?" was the fact Gabbiadini's opener had been incorrectly ruled out for offside. The first goal almost always has a significant impact on a game, and had Southampton taken the lead, things may well have been different, some would argue.

But then, we arrive back to that central tenet: the inevitability of a United victory. They rode their luck, used up in excess of nine lives and, presumably, treated Lady Luck to a fine breakfast earlier that morning.

Gabbiadini hit the bar at 2-2 and the Southampton end let out an exasperated gasp. They were one poor decision and a couple of inches from a four-goal haul against a team who were on a run of six clean sheets from their last seven games; they were in the ascendancy and looked by far the most likely to score the winner.

But then that sinister feeling starts to trickle down the spine once again; that feeling of impending doom, last experienced in the buildup to kick-off when discussing score predictions, rears its head. Titanic performances across the park from Southampton—and they truly were titanic, from Bertrand to Oriol Romeu to Gabbiadini—were not going to be enough to halt the United juggernaut.

Minute 87 was when inevitability became reality. Southampton, overstretched in attempting to win the game, fell victim to a counter-attacking move that, for the first time all afternoon, featured quality movement, speed, precision and a lethal finish to match. It had always been coming. Was anyone surprised to see Zlatan rise high and head home?

United had a stormtrooper-like quality under Sir Alex Ferguson for so long, and during David Moyes and Louis van Gaal's tenures their edge softened. Teams thought they could get under their noses and cause them problems. All of a sudden, those who once shrunk like a violet now swelled up with indignation.

That period, short but sweet for rival fans, is well and truly over.

Mourinho may count his blessings after today's performance, but the victory represents an important marker in his tenure: United are re-finding the relentless side of their personality and showcased it on Sunday in dramatic style.

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