Manchester United have earned a place in the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup with a 1-0 win over rivals Manchester City.
A second-half goal from Juan Mata proved enough in a game where Pep Guardiola's side failed to register a single shot on target.
On Sunday afternoon against Chelsea, United fell behind after just 30 seconds and there was almost a similar occurrence on Wednesday night as City wasted a glorious chance in just the second minute.
A direct run from Jesus Navas ended with a cross towards the near post for Kelechi Iheanacho, but the young forward mistimed his diving header and it went over the crossbar.
That was as good as it got for either side during the first 30 minutes with much of the game being played in the middle of the pitch, but as the first half drew to a close, both Marcus Rashford and Iheanacho were guilty of not making the most of openings at either end.
Within four minutes of the restart, Paul Pogba should have given United the lead after being played in by Zlatan Ibrahimovic but despite having both corners to choose from, he put his shot too close to Wilfredo Caballero and he made the save.
However, it took the home side just five minutes to move ahead as Mata converted into the bottom corner from eight yards, although City had reason to feel hard done by after Ander Herrera appeared to foul Fernando in order for Ibrahimovic's pass to reach the Spaniard.
Despite falling behind, City showed no extra quality in the final third and with 20 minutes remaining, they had not tested David de Gea as Aleksandar Kolarov blazed two speculative efforts high into the stands.
The expectancy was that the introduction of Sergio Aguero would force the issue in the final third but the Argentine added very little to City's effort as the combination of Marcos Rojo and Daley Blind remained strong in the centre of the United defence.
City continued to probe until the final whistle but that shot on goal never materialised and United comfortably held out to return to winning ways just three days after their embarrassment at Stamford Bridge.
Darren Plant
