Martin Dubravka has clarified whether he was awarded a Carabao Cup winner’s medal, addressing the peculiar situation of being ineligible for the final clash between Manchester United and Newcastle United.
The goalkeeper found himself in an unusual predicament when he joined Old Trafford on loan from Newcastle at the beginning of the previous season.
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Despite playing twice in the Carabao Cup for United, he unexpectedly returned to St. James Park in January, serving as the backup to Nick Pope.
However, with Pope suspended for the cup final due to a red card against Liverpool in the Premier League, Dubravka would have been the typical choice to play at Wembley.
Unfortunately, having already featured for the Red Devils, he was ineligible for selection. Consequently, Newcastle had to start Loris Karius, and they ultimately lost 2-0.
Since then, there has been speculation about whether Dubravka received a winner’s or runners-up medal, or both. The Slovakian international has now disclosed the truth.
‘I got one. I didn’t really expect it because I didn’t know if they would give it to me,’ the 34-year-old said.
‘It was [weird] but if you think about it, it’s part of the game. I played two matches for them so it was a strange situation to be in, I didn’t want to be in it.’
Dubravka went on to disclose that he didn’t receive his medal until five weeks after the final, specifically when United visited Newcastle for a league match.
‘I just opened it, because it was in a little box. I have it at home, but not on display,’ he added.
‘Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a medal, so I still appreciate it. It’s special circumstances and it was weird, obviously, because I wanted Newcastle to win. When we played against Manchester United in the league they brought it up.
‘The final last season was the strangest game for me, as you can imagine. I played two matches for Manchester United and I was back in the team [at Newcastle] so everyone was asking me who I’m going to support.
‘I always say I always support Newcastle because of the length of time I’ve spent here. It was five-and-a-half years as opposed to five months, so you can’t compare. I wanted Newcastle to win for the city, for the club because the fans are just waiting for something special.
‘It was very stressful to be fair [when he was out on loan], I’m not going to lie, because I didn’t know what to expect when I came back, but I want to be part of the team again.’
Dubravka is poised for another opportunity to secure the cup this season and is expected to be in the starting lineup for Newcastle’s quarter-final showdown against Chelsea on Tuesday night.
‘It would be absolutely fantastic. Everyone is buzzing here and everyone wants to win something and achieve something here and it would be amazing.
‘Look at the stadium and look at the fans, it’s a special place to play so it would be amazing to win something. This region means everything to me. As I said, I’ve spent so much time here.’
