>
Erik ten Hag DISMISSES the possibility of Man United holding an open-top bus parade if they win the Carabao Cup on Sunday… with the Dutch manager saying his team will need to win at least TWO trophies this season to have a public celebration
- Erik Ten Hag’s team continue to chase trophies on four fronts this season
- They face Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on Sunday
- But there are no plans for any celebration if they win the first trophy in six years.
Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag has ruled out holding an open-top bus parade if his team win the Carabao Cup and will only consider sanctioning a mass celebration if they win two trophies this season.
Ten Hag is understood to have dropped any ideas of a parade as he will immediately shift his focus to preparing his team for Wednesday’s FA Cup fifth round tie against West Ham after Sunday’s EFL Cup final.
The Dutchman’s attitude is in stark contrast to that of their opponents Newcastle, who, as Sportsmail revealed earlier this week, have planned a parade in the city center for Tuesday if Eddie Howe’s side win their first major trophy in 54 years at Wembley.
United have not even discussed the issue in recent weeks as Ten Hag’s attitude to such matters is well known at the club.
In a remarkable reversal of fortune since he took over last summer, United remain in contention for four trophies under Ten Hag after reaching the Europa League round of 16 with a thrilling victory over Barcelona. on Thursday night, and they are still involved in the Premier. League title race, five points behind leaders Arsenal.
Erik ten Hag has ruled out any chance of Manchester United celebrating a Carabao Cup victory this weekend with a parade of open-top buses.
United last held a bus parade for their fans when they won the Premier League in 2013
The most famous celebration came when they won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble in 1999.
The Old Trafford club have the chance to win their first trophy this weekend since lifting the Europa League under José Mourinho in 2017.
Ten Hag has told United staff that he will consider participating in a parade at the end of the season, but only if his team wins two trophies rather than just the Carabao Cup.
United have not won a trophy since José Mourinho’s side lifted both the EFL Cup and the UEFA Europa League in the 2016-17 season.
The last time they staged an open-top bus parade through the streets of Manchester was in 2013, when they won the last of their Premier League titles in Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season.
The most famous came after they won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble in 1999, when tens of thousands poured into the streets.
Rivals Liverpool held a victory parade to showcase the FA Cup and Carabao Cup last season but were expected to hold a Quad.
They were beaten for the Premier League title by Manchester City on the last day and lost the Champions League final to Real Madrid.
As Sportsmail revealed earlier this week, Newcastle will not stage a parade if they lose Sunday’s final at Wembley, but if their 54-year wait is over, they will display the trophy to supporters on Tuesday next week.
The club organized parades after losing in the 1974, 1998 and 1999 FA Cup finals.
Newcastle held an open-top bus parade in 1999 despite losing the FA Cup final to Man United.
Club legend Alan Shearer has spoken about what those shows felt like in the late 1990s.
‘It was like, ‘Do we really have to do a show the next day?’ Just cancel it, we don’t have an FA Cup to brag about,” he told the BBC.
“We did an open-top bus parade after being beaten twice in the Cup final and you’re like, ‘How stupid is this?'”
“But it just goes to show how desperate Newcastle fans are for success, because there were hundreds of thousands of fans from Gosforth Park to the Civic Centre. It was incredible. Absolutely scandalous. Then we had to say thank you at the Civic Center. It was embarrassing.’