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Erik ten Hag says Alejandro Garnacho was “not good enough” in his previous starts this season after the Manchester United teenager scored in the Carabao Cup victory against Crystal Palace. Having secured a much-needed Premier League victory at Burnley on Saturday evening, the Red Devils ran out comfortable 3-0 victors against Roy Hodgson’s south Londoners on Tuesday night. Casemiro scored and then crossed for Anthony Martial’s goal on a night started by Garnacho impressively putting the Carabao Cup holders ahead from Diogo Dalot’s cutback. The 19-year-old began United’s first two matches of the season, but this was the first time he was named in the starting line-up since the defeat to Tottenham five weeks ago. “You have seen at the start of the season we played him and then his contribution was not good enough,” manager Ten Hag said of the Argentina international. “But he also had some good actions. You see always he is a threat in the game even when he is not playing that well. “He has to learn when he does his job in defending he will always have his moment and he will always be decisive because he has great qualities. “As well, it’s not only off the ball. But I want to see like today, he is entering the box in the right spot to finish. “But I think it is quite normal for a player of his age that there is space for a lot of improvement. “Everyone likes him, the fans like him, the team likes him, I like him but we also have to demand from him and push him because he can act on a very high level but he has to show it every day.” United made seven alterations, as did Palace, ahead of Saturday’s Premier League reunion at Old Trafford. Ten Hag will hope Christian Eriksen and Scott McTominay can return from what the United boss called illness, so too left-back Sergio Reguilon. The on-loan Tottenham full-back’s absence meant Sofyan Amrabat filled in there on his first start for the club, before stepping into midfield at half-time. “Sofyan is a player, and that was one of the reasons we signed him, where the team needs him, he will play and he can play in more positions,” Ten Hag said. “Every player has his best position but he gives a certain dynamic in the game. We have seen today but also for him and many players, we just started. “That process was a little bit interrupted by the many injuries we have because when you can play a long time with the same team then you get routines, the players learn each other and it’s more automatic. “You see Mason (Mount), Amrabat, you see also others, they can contribute to our game and they will do.” As for Palace, Roy Hodgson had no arguments with the result as his side made a meek Carabao Cup exit in the third round. “I thought we were well beaten, basically,” said the Eagles boss, who saw Dean Henderson go off injured on his debut at former club United. “I thought they attacked better than we did, defended the few attacks we were able to mount quite comfortably. “As a result, unfortunately, you tend when that happens to only be looking at one possible result and that was the result they came up with.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live ‘There is no magic wand’ says Wolves boss after Carabao Cup exit at Ipswich ‘We gifted them two goals’ says Millie Bright after England lose to Netherlands Manchester City hit by travel headache ahead of hectic fortnight

Gary O’Neil painted a bleak picture of the situation at Wolves and admitted “no magic wand” will fix their problems after a 3-2 loss at Ipswich in the Carabao Cup third round. Wolves slumped to a fifth defeat in eight matches under the former Bournemouth manager, who only took over on August 9 following the departure of Julen Lopetegui by mutual consent. O’Neil made 10 changes for the Portman Road clash and despite taking a 2-0 lead via goals by Hwang Hee-chan and Toti, the Premier League outfit were on the end of an upset after Championship high-flyers Ipswich responded through Omari Hutchinson, Freddie Ladapo and Jack Taylor. We are six weeks into a process and there is no magic wand Gary O'Neil Asked for a message to disgruntled Wolves supporters, O’Neil insisted: “To stick with the group. “We are six weeks into a process and there is no magic wand. I can guarantee you when I arrived the place was not running perfectly and ready to go into a Premier League season. “There are a lot of things that need fixing and of course I am willing to take responsibility, but the facts are you need some time to put things in place. That does not look like a team that I have worked with for very long at this moment, which it isn’t. “Do I accept that we need to get results? Of course. Do I want the fans to enjoy every game we play and come away and support the players? Of course and we will work tirelessly to make sure we get it there and we will get it there. “But there is no transfer window. The transfer window is closed and we are together as we are and need to get the maximum out of the group. “We’ve named a strong team with 11 players that should be capable of winning here and we don’t, so it is my responsibility to make sure we get some more out of them.” Life does not get any easier for Wolves with Manchester City set to visit on Saturday and it will be a return to Molineux for Matheus Nunes, who left in a £53million deal last month. O’Neil pointed out the club’s net spend this summer when asked to reflect on the issues at the Black Country outfit. “I think when I arrived the culture of the club needed a shift and some of it needs to move towards more togetherness,” O’Neil admitted. “Yeah, there is a big list of things that need fixing. Of course I understand it is my responsibility and people will say, ‘they did fine last year,’ but the truth is they got 41 points and we made an £80million profit on players in the summer. “So, we’re £80million short of where we were and last year we got 41 points. “We need to move it from that in a more difficult situation now than the club was then player-wise, so that’s the facts of the job. I think when I arrived the culture of the club needed a shift and some of it needs to move towards more togetherness Gary O'Neil “I understood that when I took the job, I understand it now and every weekend is not going to be rosy. We’re going to suffer some tough weekends and we’ll need to crack on and go again.” While Wolves were left to reflect on a sorry defeat, Ipswich’s highly-rated manager Kieran McKenna toasted his own first win against top-flight opposition. After Hwang and Toti netted within 15 minutes, the Championship’s second-placed club continued their terrific form with three unanswered goals. Chelsea loanee Hutchinson started the comeback with a right-footed effort from eight-yards before Ladapo fired home inside the area before half-time. Taylor completed the turnaround with a 25-yard thunderbolt and the 58th-minute strike sent Ipswich into the fourth round of the competition for the first time since 2010. “We need to enjoy tonight because it is the first time we’ve had a Premier League team here in quite a few years,” McKenna acknowledged. “It is 11 years since we beat a Premier League team so a good night for progress and the regrowth of this football club again, but it is a cup game. “The result tonight does not win us anything but it is really significant as a marker point for the development of the squad, so we’ll take it as that and enjoy it for a sign of progress.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live ‘We gifted them two goals’ says Millie Bright after England lose to Netherlands Manchester City hit by travel headache ahead of hectic fortnight Rob Edwards rues Luton’s lack of attacking quality after Carabao Cup exit

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Skipper Millie Bright said England “gifted” the Netherlands their goals and were “not ruthless enough” after the Lionesses were beaten 2-1 in Utrecht in their second Nations League group game. The hosts took the lead in the 34th minute when Georgia Stanway was closed down near her own box, the ball went to Danielle van de Donk and she teed up a Lieke Martens finish, which it appeared would have been ruled out for offside if VAR had been in operation. After Alessia Russo’s 64th-minute equaliser, England were then punished after losing possession again in the 90th minute as Alex Greenwood gave the ball away and Martens fed substitute Renate Jansen, who rifled past Mary Earps. Bright told ITV: “I think there were some really good parts of the game where we really dominated. “I thought they were ruthless when they had their opportunities, and to be honest we gifted them two goals, which is really disappointing on our behalf. “I think when you concede in that manner, that’s the most disappointing thing, especially when games like this really matter. “They had probably less chances but were really, really clinical in those. We had a couple but were not ruthless enough in that area.” Having threatened little for much of the first half, England went close to levelling in the 41st minute, Rachel Daly volleying against a post, and Lauren Hemp and Lucy Bronze then saw efforts saved by Daphne van Domselaar, before Linda Beerensteyn struck the bar for the home side. I think when you concede in that manner, that's the most disappointing thing. Millie Bright Van Domselaar subsequently made an excellent save to deny Hemp early in the second half before Russo’s leveller and Jansen’s decisive late impact as the battle between England boss Sarina Wiegman’s current and former employers – both of whom she has guided to Euros glory and a World Cup final – proved an unhappy occasion for the 53-year-old Dutchwoman. Wiegman afterwards expressed frustration at the opener, replays of which suggested Van de Donk had been in an offside position. The manager described it as “obviously offside” as she voiced her disappointment at what is only the third loss of her 41-game England tenure. Wiegman told ITV: “(It is) absolutely a tough one to take and a very, very unnecessary one. “The first half they were the better team. I think second half we totally dominated the game, and of course we scored one goal – but before that we got lots of huge opportunities too. And it’s just one moment that we don’t manage the game and in the counter-attack they score for 2-1. That’s very, very disappointing. “I also think – that’s disappointing too – when they scored their first goal, we didn’t do well, we didn’t play well, but it’s so obviously offside. That needs to be seen. “I think the standards of the game are getting higher and higher, so (having VAR) would absolutely help. It’s just a little bit disappointing.” The result leaves both England and Andries Jonker’s Netherlands on three points in Group A1. Belgium, who England face twice in October in their next group games, lead the pool with four points after drawing 1-1 with Scotland, who have one. Wiegman’s side, 2-1 victors over Scotland in their opener last Friday, are attempting to secure a Paris 2024 Olympics qualification spot via this competition, and need to finish top of their group to have a chance to do so. Bright said: “It’s still all to play for. We have to rest, recover, go again – (and) reflect. These opponents are getting better and better, and we have to reflect, evolve, get better as a team, develop.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Manchester City hit by travel headache ahead of hectic fortnight Rob Edwards rues Luton’s lack of attacking quality after Carabao Cup exit Casemiro stars as Manchester United ease past Crystal Palace

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Luton boss Rob Edwards admitted his side deserved to be on the end of an upset as they crashed out of the Carabao Cup with a 1-0 defeat at Exeter. Demetri Mitchell scored the only goal of the game in the 83rd minute, poking in from close range from Yanic Wildschut’s cross, before he was sent off two minutes from time after collecting a second yellow card. Toothless Luton, who made 10 changes from their Premier League draw with Wolves, rarely troubled League One Exeter, who reached round four for the first time since 1989 and claimed their first top-flight scalp since beating Leicester in the FA Cup back in 1981. Edwards said: “It was a disappointing night for us clearly. Congratulations to Exeter, I have got to say that. With all of the possession we had tonight, we didn’t look like we were going to score. “We need to be better, more aggressive, more clinical and have more desire to create chances and, when we do, be more ruthless. “We can’t keep saying the same things at the moment. We have been sucker-punched out of a mistake on our part and we have not had the quality or desire to get the ball over the line and ultimately we got punished and don’t deserve to go through. “I do want more. There wasn’t a lack of commitment or effort, I would never label that at our group, but I want to see more quality in that final third. “As the game started opening up, we started to cause more problems for them, but they defended the box very well with high numbers and that is difficult to break down. “We wanted to go deep into the competition, but we needed to make the changes we made.” Exeter manager Gary Caldwell hailed a magnificent “team effort” from his side. “I am really proud of the players, they were absolutely incredible tonight,” Caldwell said. “We had to come up with a game plan and we had one day to work on it and they performed it to the letter. “In the beginning, I thought we understood it, but we weren’t quite aggressive enough and, as the game wore on, we got better, they got more frustrated and it was an amazing win. “Full credit to the players for the effort, the desire to not concede, to fight for the team, to fight for each other – it was unbelievable. “I said we were hoping for a special night under the lights at St James Park and I think we got it. “Everyone was amazing tonight, the finishers that came on as well. It was a real team effort tonight and everyone deserves credit. “This stadium is special and we want anyone to come here and we believe that, on our day, when we get it right, then we can be a real match for anyone. “That’s the spirit and belief I want to get into these players and tonight will give them confidence.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Manchester City hit by travel headache ahead of hectic fortnight Casemiro stars as Manchester United ease past Crystal Palace Ipswich come from two goals down to knock Wolves out of Carabao Cup

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Pep Guardiola has revealed Manchester City are affected by travel problems during one of their most hectic periods of the season. City have four away games in less than a fortnight, with Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup trip to Newcastle followed by a Premier League clash with Wolves, a Champions League outing to Leipzig and then another league game against Arsenal. Guardiola’s men would normally travel back by train or plane to minimise time on the road but neither is available on Wednesday. “We cannot come back by plane because we don’t have planes to travel back so we have to take a bus, it’s two, three hours later, we arrive here so, so late,” said the Catalan. “Then Friday we have to travel to Wolves. We go to Germany to play Champions League, it’s a really, really important game for us because we know what it means to be able to win there for qualification for the next stage. This is what we have to do.” Guardiola admits he will have to play several players he would rather rest because of injury and suspension issues in midfield, while he does not feel he can call on academy products. “We cannot take a few of them because we sell a lot of them and still they are not ready to play with us,” he said. “That’s why I have to give time to them to develop. They are still so young to play Newcastle away.” One player who will start is Kalvin Phillips, who impressed Guardiola after coming on against Nottingham Forest last weekend. It will be just a fifth start for the midfielder since his move from Leeds last summer, where his performances under Marcelo Bielsa persuaded City to sign him. “I think Marcelo gave Kalvin the best of Kalvin in his career,” said Guardiola. “I would love to have done with Kalvin what Marcelo has done to him. But it’s where he is. “We have a specific way to play. Sometimes he struggles with a few things, but the previous game was perfect. He’s open-minded, he always wants to learn, always wants to help and this is what I try to do.” Guardiola named “exhausted” Kyle Walker as one player he will rest but, whatever team he puts out, he expects a better performance than the one that saw City dumped out of the competition by Southampton in the quarter-finals last season. “What we don’t want to do is perform not who we are in terms of the principles and who we are as a team, which happened last season against Southampton,” he said. “That’s the worst game I’ve had as manager of Man City, by far. I didn’t recognise anything about that. You can lose, of course, credit to Southampton in that game, but you have to meet a minimum and this is what I want from my team in every single game, every single competition. “And tomorrow it’s going to happen, I’m pretty sure of that.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Rob Edwards rues Luton’s lack of attacking quality after Carabao Cup exit Casemiro stars as Manchester United ease past Crystal Palace Ipswich come from two goals down to knock Wolves out of Carabao Cup

A Casemiro header helped secure Manchester United the first silverware of Erik ten Hag’s reign and a Casemiro header brought a successful start to their defence of the Carabao Cup. If much else has changed since a heady day at Wembley in February, when Casemiro opened the scoring against Newcastle, his presence on the scoresheet has become an increasingly regular occurrence. Cruising past Crystal Palace has rendered this a restorative few days for United, with three straight defeats followed by consecutive wins with clean sheets. Casemiro’s goal was sandwiched by a first of the campaign each for Alejandro Garnacho and Anthony Martial, with the Frenchman finishing from the Brazilian’s cross. If Casemiro has been struggled with his defensive duties at times this season, his attacking efforts have arguably increased. His status as the unlikely top scorer was cemented. If that is partly the product of his late brace against Bayern Munich, as well as Marcus Rashford’s slow start to the campaign and the injury that delayed Rasmus Hojlund’s debut, it is part of a broader theme. Casemiro has found both goals and red cards easier to come by at Old Trafford. An 11th strike in 59 outings for United means his goal-per-game ratio for them is almost double what it is for either Real Madrid or Brazil. It will nevertheless be a problem if, further into the season, he is still United’s most prolific player. But on that rarest of occasions – when Bruno Fernandes, who started 58 of 62 matches last season, was given a night off and, after Raphael Varane went off, Casemiro ended up with the armband – he provided the productivity more associated with the new captain. He rose above Jeffrey Schlupp to head in Mason Mount’s corner and then delivered a deep cross that Martial met on the half-volley to put United three ahead. The Frenchman is very much an understudy now, with Rashford saved for the Premier League rematch with Palace at the weekend and Hojlund limited to a late cameo. But some of the more intriguing elements concerned the newcomers and the returning. Mount belonged in both categories: sidelined for a month after two dispiriting starts, the summer signing’s contribution was curtailed after 45 minutes. But he was influential and excellent, belatedly looking at home in a United shirt. Mount had a role in both first-half goals; fit to feature for the first time since the Tottenham defeat, his conversion into a No 8 continuing, he showed his passing range with a cross-field ball in the build-up to Garnacho’s opener, which was tucked in from Diogo Dalot’s cutback. He had a more direct part in the second, with the corner Casemiro headed in. It was Mount’s first assist for United and if he is less likely to be afforded set-piece duties when Christian Eriksen and Fernandes are on the pitch, it was an indication of what he can offer. There was a brightness, an intelligence that boded well. For Harry Maguire, meanwhile, a first start of the season came in a role Ten Hag has been reluctant to deploy him in – as a left-sided centre-back. For Sofyan Amrabat, a full United debut came in the unfamiliar position of left-back, at least until Victor Lindelof took over there for the second half. Behind each, Andre Onana had a quiet night; otherwise a spectator, he made two stops to deny Jean-Philippe Mateta and clinch his second successive shutout after his nightmare in Munich. Ten Hag decided not to give Altay Bayindir a debut but three goalkeepers who have been on United’s books nevertheless took the field. Dean Henderson’s Palace debut and first return to Old Trafford proved a shortlived affair, the £20m signing hobbling off after 18 minutes in which he did not have to field a shot. Palace’s other former United keeper, Sam Johnstone, was instead beaten before he touched the ball. He later made a terrific save to deny the substitute Jonny Evans his first United goal since 2014. By then, with progress assured, Dan Gore was on for his United bow, on the 16th anniversary of Evans’ first appearance. It was suitably comfortable by then, United delivering the kind of emphatic display that had eluded them this season. They were aided by the docility of the visitors. Palace represented ideal opposition: lacking strength in depth, the teamsheet showed the Premier League is Roy Hodgson’s priority. Their cup runs have been few and far between in recent seasons whereas Ten Hag tends to place more of an emphasis on such games. It was an attitude that took him to Wembley last season. 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A second-string Ipswich side put another feather in the cap of manager Kieran McKenna after they fought back from two goals down to stun Wolves in the Carabao Cup third round with a 3-2 win at Portman Road. McKenna, who has developed a reputation as one of the brightest coaches in England after he masterminded the Tractors Boys’ promotion to the Sky Bet Championship last season, watched his team go 2-0 down early on. Hwang Hee-Chan and Toti netted inside 15 minutes for the Premier League side but they still slumped to a fifth defeat in eight matches under new boss Gary O’Neil. Omari Hutchinson started the Ipswich comeback with a fine 28th-minute finish before Freddie Ladapo ensured it was all square at half-time. Jack Taylor’s superb 25-yard strike soon after the break handed former Manchester United assistant McKenna his first victory over a top-flight club. A total of 20 changes were made by both teams for this tie but it was Hwang, a starter for Wolves at Luton, who broke the deadlock in the fourth minute. Ipswich’s Dominic Ball was at fault after he could only clear Pablo Sarabia’s cross to Sasa Kalajdzic, who passed through to the unmarked Hwang and the left-footed strike by the Wolves attacker was too powerful for Vaclav Hladky. It silenced the expectant Portman Road crowd, which had seen the Tractor Boys making a flying start on their Championship return and win seven of their opening eight fixtures, but it was 2-0 after quarter of an hour. Sarabia’s dangerous corner picked out full debutant Santiago Bueno and while Hladky made a fine save from point-blank range, Wolves defender Toti was on hand to smash home on the goal line to punish more slack Ipswich defending. The narrative of McKenna’s all-conquering team being ready to claim a top flight scalp had not gone to plan so far, but the tide started to turn midway through the first half and Hutchinson reduced the deficit in the 28th minute. The Chelsea loanee had looked a threat and when he was slipped in by Marcus Harness, he did not need a second invitation and rifled beyond Wolves captain Dan Bentley from eight yards with his weaker right foot. It was Hutchinson’s stronger left foot which forced Bentley into action next but the visitors’ goalkeeper was able to tip over the 20-yard free-kick. McKenna’s men were impressing now though and the equaliser arrived six minutes before half-time through Ladapo. Ipswich’s reliable back-up forward was played in by Harness and his low strike was too strong for Bentley, who got a hand to the effort but failed to stop the hosts restoring parity. A Harness shot deflected wide 50 seconds into the second period signalled the intentions of the Championship outfit and while Matt Doherty had a shot blocked for Wolves soon after, the fifth goal of the contest went to the hosts. Harness again claimed the assist but it was all about former Peterborough midfielder Taylor, who received the ball around 25 yards out and let fly with a thunderous effort that flew past Bentley. O’Neil reacted with Matheus Cunha introduced alongside forwards Fabio Silva and Nathan Fraser, but it was Ipswich’s night and a low save by Hladky from Bueno’s 73rd-minute header helped send McKenna’s side through to the last-16 of this competition for the first time since 2010. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Late Exeter winner sends Luton crashing out of Carabao Cup Jonny May insists ‘X-factor’ Henry Arundell must show patience and adaptability Phil Jones goes back to school – Tuesday’s sporting social