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Nothing to fear for Stoke in semis, says boss Mark Hughes

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Mark Hughes and Carlos Carvalhal give their reaction after Stoke City booked their place in the Capital One Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday

Mark Hughes has backed Stoke City to beat anybody over two legs after his side sealed their place in the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup with a 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Stoke reached the last four of the League Cup for the first time since winning the competition back in 1972 thanks to goals from Ibrahim Afellay and Phil Bardsley either side of the break.

And with the semi-finals played over two legs, Hughes thinks Stoke - who could be paired with Manchester City, Everton, Liverpool or Southampton - should not fear anyone in Wednesday night's draw.

"We'd love to go all the way but there's still some good teams left in," he told Sky Sports.

"It's going to be difficult but I think we are enjoying these games and we'll look forward to the two huge ones in the coming weeks. Over two games I think we'd back ourselves against anybody.

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Highlights of Stoke's 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday in the quarter-final of the Capital One Cup

"Southampton we beat a couple of weeks back, we did the double over Everton last season, we have beaten Manchester City and Liverpool, I seem to recall, we beat in the last game of last season, so we have got a chance."

Stoke were rarely threatened by a Sheffield Wednesday side that knocked out Newcastle and Arsenal in previous rounds and Hughes was delighted with the way his side controlled the game.

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"Sheffield Wednesday came here having beat two Premier League sides in previous rounds and we knew that if we allowed them a foothold in the game it would cause us problems," Hughes added.

Ibrahim Afellay celebrates his goal with Joselu
Image: Ibrahim Afellay celebrates his goal with Joselu

"We didn't really allow that to happen and that's really pleasing from our point of view.

"Obviously we got the goal through a great strike. It's great play from Joselu on the right-hand side and a great finish from Afellay. From that point onwards we restricted them to very few opportunities and we had good control. We managed the game quite comfortably."

Meanwhile, Sheffield Wednesday boss Carlos Carvalhal insists his side's run to the Capital One Cup quarter-finals has given the team great confidence as they chase promotion from the Championship.

Ibrahim Afellay celebrates his goal with Joselu
Image: Ibrahim Afellay celebrates his goal with Joselu

"I congratulate Stoke City, they deserved to win and have a very good quality," Carvalhal told Sky Sports.

"I must congratulate my team for what we have done in his competition. We came to compete and wanted to win but the competition has given us great confidence."

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