Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has said it was about time Manchester United ended their six-year trophy drought by winning the Carabao Cup.
Guardiola, whose men have won the League Cup six times in the last 10 years, aimed the cheeky dig at his cross-city rivals after United defeated Newcastle 2-0 at Wembley on Sunday.
The City boss was asked about United's success at his press conference ahead of Tuesday's clash with Bristol City in the FA Cup.
Guardiola won nine major pieces of silverware in a timeframe similar to United's long wait between triumphs, including four Premier League titles and four League Cups.
Guardiola congratulated United on Sunday's win but he could not resist a joke about financial matters.
Amazingly United's outlay actually eclipses City's with £685m spent by the Old Trafford outfit in comparison to £660m by their rivals.
Those figures may be relatively close but when looking at net spending in that time the difference is more stark, with United's being £527m and City's £162m.
Guardiola said: "Congratulations to United for the Carabao Cup and to Newcastle as well – the game was entertaining.
"Sooner or later it should happen, shouldn't it? It should happen. Welcome."
Asked if United could now kick on and become serious title challengers, Guardiola said with a broad grin: "If they spend a little more money, yes! It's because they didn't spend, isn't it?
"It's normal, they're in the position they normally should be. The reality is that two teams, Liverpool and ourselves, have done incredibly well in the numbers.
"When I landed here I thought United would always be there, for the history, for everything, and Erik is doing an incredible job.
"It's normal. United have to be there. Always having been opponents we were better in the previous seasons and now it's closer. Anything can happen in the Premier League."
Yet while Guardiola was happy to welcome United back to the top table of the English game, he still landed a further blow on City's rivals by referring to the two clubs' recent trophy count.
He said: "I remember when we travelled to win our first Carabao Cup and everyone was so excited to do it. For the staff it was new, for the players it was new.
"The fourth time we travelled there to win the Carabao Cup for the fourth time in a row, it was, 'Well, it's OK, another one, another day in the office'."
