Southampton stun Man City in English League Cup quarterfinals

LONDON: Southampton stunned Manchester City to book a place in the semifinals of the English League Cup on Wednesday.

The bottom team in the Premier League produced a major upset by beating defending champions City 2-0 at St. Mary’s and will now face Newcastle over two legs in a bid to reach the final.

Nottingham Forest beat Wolves 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw and will take on Manchester United in the other semifinal.

It was Southampton, however, that produced the shock of the round against City.

First-half goals from Sekou Mara and Moussa Djenepo allowed the hosts to put aside worries about their relegation battle and provide their fans with a reason for celebrating.

Eight-time winners City were the overwhelming favorite to progress to the semifinals after dominating the competition in recent times, lifting the trophy on six occasions in the last nine years.

Manager Pep Guardiola has won it four times since taking charge of City in 2016.

However, Southampton moved a step closer to the final at Wembley with the most impressive win yet since manager Nathan Jones was appointed in November.

“I’m really proud of the players, of myself and the coaches. We’ve gone through a lot recently, people questioning a lot of things. That goes a little way to justifying why we’re here and what team we’re trying to create,” Jones said.

In the night’s other match, Wily Boly’s first-half goal put Forest ahead in the game between two more teams who are battling against relegation from the Premier League. Raul Jimenez evened the score after the break.

Dean Henderson made the decisive save to deny Wolves’ Joseph Hodge in the shootout and send Forest through.

Perhaps Guardiola had one eye on Saturday’s league derby against