During the shootout, Wout Weghorst was prevented from taking one of the first five penalties by Erik ten Hag, who ultimately led Manchester United to a dramatic victory over Brighton in the FA Cup semifinals.
The Red Devils won the game 7-6 on penalties after a goalless 120 minutes, with Casemiro, Diogo Dalot, Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, and Marcel Sabitzer all successfully converting their spot-kicks.
Weghorst eventually scored United’s sixth penalty before Victor Lindelof secured the win with his own successful attempt, following Solly March’s missed penalty for Brighton.
Whilst the rest of the players celebrated together, Wout Weghorst celebrated in front of the @ManUtd fans ♥️#EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/UMU3mdSIqP
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) April 23, 2023
But Weghorst wanted to take one of the first five penalties as he revealed that the Man United coaching staff prevented him from taking a penalty earlier in the shootout.
“I wanted to take one, I wanted to take one of the first five,” he told reporters after the win at Wembley Stadium. “But the trainer decided this.
“But, yeah, I’m glad I could contribute to today so personally that’s a good feeling.”
Asked about the result and his mood, the 30-year-old replied: “It’s great, that was our goal and our goal for today in general.
“It’s really good to be in the final.
“Of course it’s a different tournament, a different trophy [compared to the Europa League] and we’re disappointed from that. We said we wanted to win three trophies, so that was a really big disappointment.”
Man United’s passage to the FA Cup final comes just days after they were knocked out of the Europa League by Sevilla.
Weghorst refused to be drawn on the defeat to the La Liga club as he targets another trophy this season.
“Today is not about the Europa League. It’s about the FA Cup, and for us to stay in this tournament and have the opportunity to get another trophy,” he added. “That’s what we did.”
Man United look well-placed to finish in the top-four in the Premier League table and could bag a second piece of silverware following their Carabao Cup success.
Will they complete a domestic cup double? Let us know what you think.