Manchester United moved into the last eight of the FA Cup after Casemiro’s late winner earned the Red Devils a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest.
A forgetful cup clash at the City Ground appeared to be heading towards a goalless draw, until Casemiro bundled in an 89th-minute free-kick from Bruno Fernandes to send Erik ten Hag’s team into the next round.
This was far from a vintage performance from the Red Devils who again lacked threat in the absence of Rasmus Hojlund at centre-forward, despite dominating the possession against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side.
Antony hit the crossbar early on for the visitors, while Scott McTominay twice saw efforts saved by Forest ‘keeper Matt Turner.
Ten Hag, however, was delighted that his side ‘found the way to win’ after a Premier League setback at home to Fulham last weekend.
“It’s the best time to score at the end. On Saturday we felt a defeat in stoppage time [against Fulham],” Ten Hag said to BBC One.
“We scored in the right moment. In the second half after five or six minutes we found the game. Then we were continually in their half and took control of the game. Before that we had to make some changes. The routines fell away.
“We had chances but we allowed them to create some chances. We should avoid that.
“Every win is important. We take it 24 hours and then we move on.
“Fantastic games coming up. This team, what they showed today, that’s great. They have to show it every game. I’ve seen it the last couple of months, not on Saturday.
“We found the way to win.
“We were consistent. We lost one time in 2024. We are consistent. It’s not so easy when you have the whole backline and we have to shuffle and play players in different positions. I’m very proud we did it.”
Manchester United will host Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter-finals with the ties set to be played over the weekend of March 16 and 17.
