Carabao Cup: Jesse Lingard stars to send Man United through

Lingard finished after Marcus Rashford’s fine flick split open the Swansea defence

A much-changed United side went ahead on 21 minutes through the 24-year-old’s nice finish from a clever Marcus Rashford flick, and it was 2-0 on 59 minutes as Lingard’s superb, guided header found the corner from Matteo Darmian’s delivery.

The result means holders United make the fifth round for only the third time in six years, the draw for which will be made on Thursday at 4pm.

After an even opening with several half-chances for both sides, United took the lead midway through the first half through Lingard.

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Ander Herrera’s low pass into Rashford’s feet was flicked on brilliantly by the forward, and Lingard, who had plenty to do from just inside the area, found the bottom right corner past the diving Kristoffer Nordfeldt.

Manchester United’s Anthony Martial and Swansea City’s Angel Rangel battle for the ball

Swansea reacted well, and nearly levelled in bizarre fashion after Daley Blind’s misjudged header clear came off Oliver McBurnie and fell just wide of Sergio Romero’s right-hand post.

Lingard produced another fine finish to make it 2-0 just before the hour mark; after Darmian had been found by Axel Tuanzebe on the right, the Italian’s pinpoint cross found the Englishman on the gallop 18 yards out, and he guided a superb header past Nordfeldt into the top left corner.

Tuanzebe should have made it 3-0 after Nordfeldt’s unconvincing save from a Chris Smalling header, poking the rebound over the bar from just three yards out on the stretch.

Romelu Lukaku got around 20 minutes as a substitute, but was largely anonymous in the closing stages, as Romero saved from point-blank range from Leroy Fer’s far-post effort to keep a clean sheet at the Liberty Stadium.