Martin Dubravka reveals 'weird' Manchester United feeling after Newcastle United's Carabao Cup final defeat

Martin Dubravka has set his sights on winning his second Carabao Cup medal, though this time he wants to do it the proper way.

Dubravka was cup-tied when Newcastle United reached the final two years ago after playing in the previous rounds with Manchester United, who beat the Magpies 2-0 at Wembley.

The Slovakian spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Old Trafford, playing in third and fourth round wins over Aston Villa and Burnley, respectively. Newcastle recalled him during the January transfer window and he would have played at Wembley had he been eligible with Nick Pope’s suspended. Instead, third choice Loris Karius started in between the sticks.

"It was a weird feeling," Dubravka told Sky Sports News. "Obviously, I didn't expect it because you just have a certain amount of medals, but they sent it to me.

"It was a strange feeling because a couple of [Manchester United] boys and a couple of coaches approached me straight after the game and asked, 'Do you want a medal?' I said, 'No. We need to show some respect to my team and my club because it's been a long time since we were in the final. It didn't work for us this time, but maybe next time'."

The Red Devils sent Dubravka’s medal through his agency, but now the goalkeeper is hoping to lift the Carabao Cup trophy for real when Newcastle face Liverpool at Wembley on Sunday, March 16.

Dubravka has played four of the Magpies’ six games en route to the final, including both semi-finals matches against Arsenal.

"I've been here so many years, but I've been through whole competitions together with the team so I could tell that the two matches against Arsenal were special games," he added following Newcastle's semi-final win against the Gunners. "The atmosphere at St James' Park was unbelievable.

"We just wanted it more than them. We put more than any other team in this competition so I think we deserve to be in the final."