A brace from Jesse Lingard against Swansea City ensured Manchester United eased into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night but Jose Mourinho singled out the young duo of Axel Tuanzebe and Scott McTominay for praise after the match.
“The kids are always the kids,” the Red Devils manager told MUTV.
Mourinho opted for a 3-4-3 system and Tuanzebe started on the left of the visitors’ three-man defence while McTominay partnered Ander Herrera in central midfield.
Lingard scored the opener early on (21st minute) to calm fears on the dugout for the Red Devils had been under pressure to register a win after a shock loss at Huddersfield Town in the Premier League on Saturday. The midfielder would then score another on the hour-mark to give United some breathing space in the tie.
“When they play, it’s nice and it’s good. When they perform well, it’s even better. I think they both had good performances,” Mourinho added.
Both players, products of the United Academy, made Mourinho’s starting XI for the first time this season and played the entire 90 minutes at the Liberty Stadium.
“I would say especially Scott, as he had a big influence in the game in a crucial area. He was very comfortable and strong in midfield. I tried to give Axel good protection. I think Axel started a little bit shaky but he got stability and had a good performance”.
Mourinho’s decision to play with three at the back raised a few eyebrows but the Portuguese tactician explained why he opted for that formation.
“I decided to play with three because also (Victor) Victor was perhaps not coming with his confidence levels very high so I decided to play both with the experience of (Chris) Smalling. It was good for the players to have confidence,” the 54-year-old revealed.