‘Paint the city red’ – Henderson in Man Utd call to arms

Will Ford
Dean Henderson Manchester United Gary Neville

Dean Henderson has called on his teammates to “paint the city red” in a call to arms ahead of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Manchester rivals City.

Pep Guardiola takes his side to Old Trafford on Wednesday night in a blockbuster tie to see who will play Tottenham in the final at Wembley.

The two sides met at the same stage last season, with City emerging as 3-2 aggregate winners.


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City have dominated the Carabao Cup in recent seasons and are searching for a record-equalling fourth-consecutive triumph.

Henderson – who may start in goal – knows what it would mean to United fans to beat their city rivals.

“This one will mean a lot. Obviously the vibe will be massive throughout the city,” the England goalkeeper told the club’s official website .

“The city is mostly red, and we need to paint it red. But we’re getting better all the time, so hopefully we can get a good result.

“One team has got to win it, so I think both teams will go for it. We’ll probably take the game to them and have a go, and see what comes off.”

United have failed to win a major honour since the 2016/17 season but will set up a final with Tottenham by beating City.

“[It’s] massive. The club’s built on silverware.

“We need to win trophies and obviously we’re improving and evolving on the pitch, but no one cares unless we win trophies. So we need to put that to the forefront of our minds, and we need to find a way to do that.”

He added: “I know a few Man City fans from when I was growing up, and obviously there was rivalry between us, even at school and things like that.

“To beat them and to be involved in it would be a dream come true. They’re the sort of things you think about as a young kid. It’d be amazing, and something I’m really looking forward to.”