Winning the FA Cup would not make this a successful season for Man Utd – Nemanja Matic

Posted Wednesday, March 21, 2018 by squawka.com

Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic has admitted that even winning the FA Cup would not make this a successful season for the Red Devils.

With United 16 points adrift of crosstown rivals Manchester City in the Premier League and out of the Champions League, the FA Cup is now Jose Mourinho's only chance of lifting a trophy this season.

United were knocked out of the Carabao Cup following defeat to Bristol City and can now only target a second-place finish as Pep Guardiola's side already have one hand on the league title.

The Red Devils exited the Champions League after losing to Sevilla 2-1 at Old Trafford last week, having only managed a 0-0 first-leg away draw.

Despite spending big in the summer with investments in Romelu Lukaku from Everton and Matic from Chelsea, Mourinho will be disappointed that the FA Cup is the only piece of silverware they are able to truly contend for – sentiments echoed by the Serbian international himself.

"I think not," Matic said to the official Manchester United website when asked if lifting the FA Cup would make for a successful season.

"I always want to win more and more but, in the Premier League, you have six or seven teams who want to win the league. It is not possible to always win, but if we win the FA Cup it is good, but not perfect.

"You have four competitions in the season, if you win one, for me, it is not enough.

"If you win the FA Cup, I cannot say it is a successful season but it's a good season. The FA Cup is very important in England and we will fight to the end. I hope we can win this competition."

United progressed through to the FA Cup semi-finals after defeating Brighton 2-0 at home thanks to goals from Lukaku and Matic, and will face Tottenham Hotspur in the next round.

The Red Devils won both the League Cup and Europa League last season in Mourinho's debut campaign for the club, but this season has fallen short of expectations.