Sheffield Wednesday loanee Jaden Heskey could be the beneficiary of a Carabao Cup winners’ medal after his parent club, Manchester City, beat Arsenal 2-0 in Sunday’s final at Wembley.
Pep Guardiola’s side got the better of their Premier League title rivals via second half headers from defender Nico O’Reilly. The City academy graduate scored twice in the space of four minutes to seal a ninth League Cup title for the Blues and extend Arsenal’s wait for a trophy.
The victory marked City’s first Carabao Cup crown since 2021 and their fifth of the Pep Guardiola era. They will now be hoping to follow it up by pipping Arsenal to the Premier League title and winning the FA Cup.
City’s Carabao Cup adventure this season started with a 2-0 win over League One side Huddersfield Town at the Accu Stadium back in September. Goals either side of half-time from Phil Foden and Savinho sealed a routine victory for Guardiola’s troops, sealing their spot in the fourth round of the competition.
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That trip to West Yorkshire marked a special occasion for now-Owls loanee Heskey, who made his City debut against the Terriers. Heskey came off the bench in the second half, replacing O’Reilly, and stored 14 minutes under his belt.
The Wednesday midfielder’s brother, Reigan, also made his City debut against Huddersfield, coming on in the closing stages to replace Savinho. He has not featured for the Blues since.
Nevertheless, the Heskey brothers still qualify for Carabao Cup winners’ medals following City’s triumph at Wembley on Sunday. Each of the 11 starters and substitutes were guaranteed medals, but City were given 30 in total, meaning they are allowed to hand those out at their own discretion, meaning the Heskey brothers could be handed one each.
English Football League rule 20.2 on the awarding of medals states: "In addition to the Cup, the Management Committee shall present thirty souvenirs to the winning Club in the Final Tie; and thirty souvenirs to the losing Club in the Final Tie.
“Additional souvenirs may be presented with the consent of the Management Committee but shall be at the cost of the requesting Club.”
Over the course of City’s Carabao Cup campaign, 27 players were used by Guardiola, meaning the club has won enough medals to cover every player involved. However, goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, for example, was awarded a medal on Sunday due to him being on the bench despite not playing a single minute in the competition.
Meanwhile, Oscar Bobb, who featured in City’s first three Carabao Cup matches this season, is no longer at the Etihad Stadium after being sold to Fulham in the January transfer window.
In addition to Wednesday loanee Heskey, Kalvin Phillips, who is currently at Sheffield United, and Divine Mukasa, who is currently at Leicester City, also featured in the competition for City earlier this season before being allowed to head out on loan in the mid-season window.
With City being handed 30 medals to hand out at their own discretion, Heskey is entitled to one after featuring for City in the competition back in September. Since joining the Owls on loan in January, the midfielder has made 13 appearances, banking 12 starts.
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