Jose Mourinho pleased with midfield three in Manchester derby

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho before his side's Premier League match with Stoke City at Old Trafford on October 2, 2016
© SilverHub
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho hails Ander Herrera, Michael Carrick and Paul Pogba following the League Cup victory over Manchester City on Wednesday night.

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has paid tribute to Ander Herrera, Michael Carrick and Paul Pogba following Wednesday's 1-0 win over Manchester City in the League Cup.

An underwhelming first 45 minutes produced few chances for either side, but Man United improved after the interval and secured their spot in the quarter-finals courtesy of a strike from Juan Mata.

Mourinho has said that his midfield trio's willingness to press higher up the field was a key contributor to the victory, which ensured that Man City are now without a win in their last six games in all competitions.

"We were getting confident step by step, we were starting to trust our defensive organisation," Mourinho told MUTV. "Then in the second half, especially Herrera, Carrick and Pogba, they increased the tempo. They started pressing higher.

"I thought Ander brought the team to different levels of intensity and pressing. Then we started recovering balls and being dangerous."

Next up for Man United is a Premier League clash at home to Burnley on Saturday afternoon.

Valencia's Britihs coach Gary Neville gestures from the sideline during the UEFA Champions League football match Valencia CF vs Olympique Lyonnais at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia on December 9, 2015.
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Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City107212491523
2Arsenal1072123101323
3Liverpool1072124131123
4Chelsea107122191222
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs10550145920
6Everton10532158718
7Watford104331413115
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd104331312115
9Southampton103431110113
10Bournemouth103341214-212
11Leicester CityLeicester103341216-412
12Stoke CityStoke103341217-512
13Crystal Palace103251416-211
14Burnley10325813-511
15Middlesbrough10244911-210
16West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom102441014-410
17West Ham UnitedWest Ham103161019-910
18Hull City10217823-157
19Swansea CitySwansea10127918-95
20Sunderland10028720-132