Colchester United took on Manchester United at Old Trafford

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The U's memorable Carabao Cup run came to an end after they were beaten 3-0 at Old Trafford at the quarter-final stage on December 18, 2019.

John McGreal's side superbly held their Premier League hosts at bay in a goal-less first half, in front of more than 5,000 travelling U's fans.

But the U's resistance was broken soon after half-time following a devastating ten-minute second-half scoring spell, from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side.

Goals from Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Ryan Jackson's own goal effectively put paid to Colchester's challenge, as they bowed out of the League Cup.

"It was a shame to lose but certainly not the end of the world," said the U's long-serving defender Tom Eastman, who is a Manchester United fan by his own admission.

"We weren't disgraced, especially after that first-half performance in which everyone defended brilliantly.

"United are a very good team and they do that (score goals) against the best sides in the country.

"They put a strong side out but we defended well in the first half.

"They didn't have too many clear-cut chances.

"We made it hard for them but it was a shame we conceded those goals at the start of the second half.

"They ran away with it a bit, which was a pity because we were doing more attacking at that point.

"Their first goal came after a Ryan Jackson shot.

"They countered and scored a good goal.

"From there, it was always going to be difficult to get back in the game."

John McGreal said he was proud of his players' performance.

"When we saw the teamsheet, we were quite surprised to be honest," said McGreal.

"We were expecting a couple more of the younger boys to come into it, that they've been introducing in the league.

"When you see a big fully loaded team like that, you do then think 'wow, this is big football now'.

"We stuck to the game plan and the idea was to frustrate them and to close the gaps, in front of the four.

"I thought we did that to a man really.

"We gave away territory and possession but I was really proud of the first-half performance.

"We had opportunities to counter in the first half and I just felt that we didn't take them.

"We needed to take more of the ball and that's what happened."

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he knew Colchester would be tough to break down.

"I thought we played well first half, but we were wasteful," Solskjaer said.

"I think we played miles better in the first half than the second half, but we scored and in games like this you need a first goal to settle any doubt and then spaces will come, and it'll flow more.

"But I think we did OK, actually.

"They kept a clean sheet against Palace and Tottenham, and we knew they'd be hard to break down.

"In the end, the first time they really went for it, had a chance, counter-attack and of course that settled everything."