More cup misery for Moyes

Sunderland 2 Manchester 1

To do so twice, in the space of 48 hours, in the process suffering a hat-trick of defeats for the first time in almost 13 years, well, that can only be classed as downright carelessness by Manchester United.

Whatever Swansea City can do, so too can Sunderland. For so long perennial bridesmaids when it comes to games against the reigning Premier League champions, Gus Poyet’s men were meant to provide a much-needed respite for David Moyes. Instead, the Wearside club, hopeless in the league but a knockout when it comes to sudden-death, made it six consecutive victories in the cups this season.

With a second leg of this Capital One Cup semi-final to come at Old Trafford later this month, a venue where Sunderland are without a victory for almost 46 years, there is hope of redemption for the Scot. But given a home record pock-marked with four defeats already this term, Sunderland will travel with hope of securing a place in their first Wembley cup final for 22 years.

Their winning goal came with 25 minutes remaining, at a point in proceedings when the visitors, who last won this competition in 2010, looked set to build on a headed equaliser from skipper Nemanja Vidic shortly after half-time.

It failed to materialise, and Adam Johnson, the substitute who had entered the fray less than 10 minutes previously, was felled in the area by a needlessly clumsy challenge by Tom Cleverley. The protests were predictable, but referee Andre Marriner was unmoved. Fabio Borini ignored the commotion to find the roof of the net with a perfectly executed penalty as a contest which took time to warm up belatedly sprang to life.

Just 48 hours after both sides were in FA Cup action — they each made seven changes from the weekend, including a Sunderland debut for on-loan Valencia defender Marcos Alonso — it was a predictably sedate start from both sides, and it took 25 minutes before the first shot in anger. It came from Ryan Giggs, a winner in this competition as long ago as 1992.

Poyet was left justifiably apoplectic as his defenders stood off to such an extent that the Welshman was afforded time and space to run onto Michael Carrick’s pass and unleash a deflected long-range effort that beat Vito Mannone, before hitting the crossbar and bouncing over.

United found the net before the interval, Adnan Januzaj, who profited from switching flanks to the right early on in proceedings, beating Mannone with a crisp close-range finish from a Patrice Evra cross. However, the effort was correctly ruled out after Giggs had strayed half a yard offside, directly in the Sunderland keeper’s line of view.

If Giggs felt his evening had reached its nadir with his unwanted role in that move, he was mistaken. The contest had seeped into first-half stoppage time when Seb Larsson swung over a free-kick into the box from near halfway after a foul on Steven Fletcher by Jonny Evans.

Wes Brown, peeling off at the back post, provided a tempting knock-back across the face of goal where Giggs, tussling with his former United team-mate Phil Bardsley, succeeded in diverting the ball into his own net from a yard to give Sunderland a rather undeserved lead, the first goal conceded by Moyes’ side in the competition this season.

The Welshman was forced to stew on his unintended generosity only until seven minutes into the second half, when the visitors deservedly drew level. It was a goal of stunning simplicity, Michael Carrick sending over a far-post corner where Vidic out-jumped Brown and John O’Shea to head his first goal of the season into the top corner.

The odds on Sunderland claiming the next goal at that stage must have been lengthy, yet to their credit that’s just what the hosts did, holding on doggedly to ensure the return won’t be the foregone conclusion most felt it might be thanks to Borini’s assured finish.

Januzaj went close to providing a late leveller on three separate occasions, twice shooting narrowly wide before putting his final opportunity onto the roof of the net to seal United’s first defeat to these opponents in 21 meetings.

Of course, it’s only half-time, and there remains an opportunity to right the damage, but this was another significant blow to his managerial credibility Moyes could well have done without.

SUNDERLAND (4-1-4-1) Mannone 7; Bardsley 8, O’Shea 7, Brown 7, Alonso 8; Cattermole 7; Giaccherini 5 (Johnson 56, 7), Larsson 6, Ki 7, Borini 8; Fletcher 4 (Altidore 72, 5).

MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1) De Gea 5; Rafael 5, Vidic 6, Evans 4 (Smalling 61, 4), Evra 7; Carrick 6, Cleverley 4 (D Fletcher 74, 5); Valencia 4 (Hernandez 87, 5), Giggs 4, Januzaj 8; Welbeck 4.

Referee: Andre Marriner 6.