English football has never been short of cup upsets, but for sheer jaw-dropping audacity and historical weight, few results in the modern game can match what unfolded at Blundell Park on the wet Wednesday evening of August 27, 2025, when Grimsby Town Vs Man United Lineups And H2H Stats became the most searched football topic in the country after the League Two Mariners knocked the Red Devils out of the Carabao Cup in the most extraordinary fashion imaginable.
Kicking off at 8:00pm BST in front of a packed 8,747-capacity crowd in Cleethorpes, Grimsby Town pulled off a stunning 12-11 penalty shootout victory following a dramatic 2-2 draw — delivering what was widely described as one of the most embarrassing results in Manchester United’s history.
The magnitude of the occasion was impossible to overstate: it was the first time in Manchester United’s history that they had been eliminated from a cup competition by a team from England’s fourth tier.
Ruben Amorim had named a strong lineup for the occasion, mindful of a winless start to his Premier League campaign, fielding £200 million worth of summer attackers including Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha and Amad Diallo behind a midfield anchored by Kobbie Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte.
But from the first whistle, it was Grimsby — fourth in League Two at the time and managed by David Artell — who played with the greater confidence, pressing high, winning second balls and creating genuine chances against opponents operating at a level six divisions above them.
Charles Vernam opened the scoring on 22 minutes, steering Darragh Burns’ deep cross home at the far post to send Blundell Park into raptures, and the stadium erupted again just eight minutes later when Tyrell Warren — a former Manchester United academy player — walked the ball into an empty net after André Onana failed to clear Vernam’s corner.
A remarkable 2-0 half-time lead for the League Two side against one of the most expensively assembled squads in Premier League history.
Amorim threw on Bruno Fernandes, Bryan Mbeumo and Matthijs de Ligt at the interval and United, as expected, pressed hard in the second half, with Mbeumo eventually pulling one back before Harry Maguire headed home a late equaliser in the 89th minute, assisted by Mason Mount, to force penalties.
What followed was one of the most extraordinary shootouts English football has witnessed — a sudden death marathon that saw 23 consecutive spot-kicks converted before Mbeumo struck the crossbar with his second attempt to hand Grimsby a famous victory.
Grimsby Town Vs Man United Lineups And H2H Stats — Full Starting XIs
Grimsby Town Starting XI (4-1-4-1)
| # | Player | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christy Pym | GK | |
| 5 | Harvey Rodgers | RB | Subbed off 79′ |
| 21 | Tyrell Warren | CB | Goal 30′ |
| 17 | Cameron McJannett | CB | Yellow card |
| — | Jayden Sweeney | LB | |
| 20 | George McEachran | DM | Subbed off 73′ |
| 22 | Cameron Gardner | RM | Subbed off 73′ |
| 4 | Kieran Green | CM | Subbed off 64′ |
| 8 | Evan Khouri | CM | |
| 18 | Darragh Burns | LM | Assist 22′, Assist 30′ |
| 30 | Charles Vernam | ST | Goal 22′, Assist 30′, Subbed off 64′ |
Subs used: H. Brown (64′, for Vernam), G. Turi (64′, for Green), C. Oduor (73′, for McEachran), J. Kabia (73′, for Gardner), R. Staunton (79′, for Rodgers)
Subs not used: S. Auton, Amaluzor, Rose, Soonsup-Bell
Manchester United Starting XI (3-4-2-1)
| # | Player | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | André Onana | GK | |
| 26 | Ayden Heaven | CB | |
| 5 | Harry Maguire | CB | Goal 89′ |
| 33 | Tyler Fredricson | CB | Yellow card 36′, Subbed off HT |
| 13 | Patrick Dorgu | LWB | Subbed off HT |
| 25 | Manuel Ugarte | CM | Subbed off HT |
| 37 | Kobbie Mainoo | CM | |
| 2 | Diogo Dalot | RWB | |
| 16 | Amad Diallo | AM | |
| 10 | Matheus Cunha | AM | |
| 30 | Benjamin Sesko | ST |
Subs used at HT: B. Fernandes (for Fredricson), B. Mbeumo (for Dorgu, Goal 82′), M. de Ligt (for Ugarte)
Subs used 2nd half: M. Mount (on, Assist 89′), J. Zirkzee
Subs not used: Bay?nd?r, Heaton, León, Casemiro
Match Statistics And Grimsby Town Vs Man United H2H
Match Statistics
| Statistic | Grimsby Town | Manchester United |
|---|---|---|
| Goals (90 mins) | 2 | 2 |
| Penalty Shootout | 12 | 11 |
| Winner | Grimsby Town | — |
| Venue | Blundell Park (8,747) | — |
| Referee | Tony Harrington | — |
Goalscorers:
| Minute | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 22′ | Charles Vernam | Grimsby Town |
| 30′ | Tyrell Warren | Grimsby Town |
| 82′ | Bryan Mbeumo | Manchester United |
| 89′ | Harry Maguire | Manchester United |
Full H2H Record — Grimsby Town vs Manchester United
| Date | Fixture | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 27, 2025 | Grimsby vs Man United | Carabao Cup | 2-2 (Grimsby win 12-11 pens) |
| Mar 17, 1948 | Grimsby vs Man United | Division One | 1-1 |
| Oct 11, 1947 | Man United vs Grimsby | Division One | 3-4 (Grimsby win) |
| Dec 28, 1946 | Grimsby vs Man United | Division One | 0-0 |
| Aug 31, 1946 | Man United vs Grimsby | Division One | 2-1 (United win) |
| Jan 24, 1931 | Grimsby vs Man United | FA Cup | 1-0 (Grimsby win) |
| Nov 14, 1936 | Grimsby vs Man United | Division One | 6-2 (Grimsby win) |
The result — the first meeting between the clubs since 1948 — shook English football to its core and prompted widespread soul-searching at Old Trafford about the true state of a club that had invested so heavily in the summer yet found themselves eliminated from the cup at the earliest possible stage by opponents playing six tiers below them in the football pyramid.
