Man Utd beaten but Mourinho revels in trip to Wembley

Hull City 2 Manchester United 1 (United win 3-2 on aggregate)

Manchester United's 17-match unbeaten run was ended by Hull on Thursday night but Jose Mourinho's men still progressed to their ninth League Cup final. Leading 2-0 from the first leg at Old Trafford, an under-strength United suffered a 2-1 defeat at a KCOM Stadium.

Tom Huddlestone gave Hull the lead in the first-half from the penalty spot after Marcos Rojo's tug on Harry Maguire's shirt and although Paul Pogba levelled for United after the break, Oumar Niasse won the match for the Tigers five minutes from time to set up a tense finale, with the Tigers needing one more goal to progress.

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It wasn't the scoreline Mourinho wanted on his 54th birthday but the fact is the Special One could move level with Brian Clough and Alex Ferguson on four League Cup wins if United beat Southampton at Wembley on 26 February.

A winner with Chelsea in 2005, 2007 and 2015, Mourinho has never lost a league cup final and the United manager was delighted with the prospect of another trip to the famous stadium. "Wembley is Wembley, it is for professionals with passion for football," he declared. "It has a special meaning, a special feeling."

Only Liverpool with 12 league cup final appearances have a better record in the tournament than United, and the United boss couldn't resist a dig at the Reds' manager following their semi-final defeat to Southampton on Wednesday. Jurgen Klopp had blamed the wind as one reason his side lost to the Saints, notes Metro, and when asked if United were favourites to lift the cup next month, Mourinho told reporters: "I don't think we are favourites against nobody, and it doesn't matter where we play, against who, we are never favourites, normally the stadium is windy and it's difficult."

Clearly in a mischievous birthday mood, Mourinho then appeared to have a pop at another Premier League rival, on the day Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger accepted a misconduct charge for losing his temper with the fourth official against Burnley at the weekend. "I just want to say congratulations to my players," said Mourinho. "It was a difficult road to be in the final and we are in the final. I don't want to say anything else. It is enough, I am calm, I behaved on the bench, no sending off, no punishment so no more words."