The fourth round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday brought mixed emotions for fans of five of the six Big Six teams with decisive matches. Some of the title favorites, such as Liverpool and Tottenham, were eliminated early, while Arsenal, Chelsea (with a lot of excitement), and Manchester City advanced to the next round.
Liverpool 0-3 Crystal Palace
Liverpool, fielding a significantly rotated side, were convincingly knocked out of the Carabao Cup at Anfield by Crystal Palace. The visitors took a commanding 2-0 lead into halftime with two goals from Ismaïla Sarr (41st and 45th minutes), taking advantage of Liverpool's defensive errors.
Liverpool struggled to break down a well-organized Palace defense in the second half. Their misery was compounded when young substitute Amara Nallo was sent off for a professional foul in the 80th minute. Yeremy Pino sealed the win for Palace with a superb solo goal in the 88th minute. This result marks a worrying trend for Liverpool, being their sixth defeat in their last seven matches in all competitions.
Wolverhampton 3-4 Chelsea
Chelsea advanced to the quarter-finals after a thrilling, high-scoring affair at Molineux. They raced into a comfortable 3-0 lead by halftime. However, the second half saw a spirited Wolves comeback. Chelsea managed to hold on for a narrow victory, despite a nervy finish that saw the scoreline close to 4-3. Chelsea's win ensures their progression in the competition. Forward Liam Delap was sent off in the 86th minute following his return from injury.
Swansea City 1-3 Manchester City
Manchester City came from behind to defeat Championship side Swansea City away from home. Swansea initially took the lead in the 12th minute. City, without their prolific striker Erling Haaland (who was rested), equalized before halftime through Jérémy Doku (39th minute). They then took control of the game in the second half, with goals from Omar Marmoush (77th minute) and Rayan Cherki (90+3 minute) to secure their spot in the quarter-finals. City dominated possession (76%) and finished with 24 shots.
Newcastle 2-0 Tottenham
Tottenham was eliminated from the competition following a 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United at St. James' Park. Newcastle took the lead in the first half. The decisive second goal came early in the second half from Nick Woltemade (50th minute), who headed into an unguarded net after a mistake from the Spurs goalkeeper.
Tottenham struggled to create clear-cut chances, and despite a better spell in the first half after conceding the first goal, they could not find a way past the reigning League Cup holders.
Arsenal 2-0 Brighton
Arsenal, despite making 10 changes to their starting lineup and fielding a very young side, secured their place in the EFL Cup Quarter-Finals with a solid second-half performance. The match made history as 15-year-old Max Dowman became Arsenal's youngest-ever player to start a competitive match.
he first half was difficult for the Gunners, who looked fragile defensively. Brighton created the better chances, forcing new goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga into a couple of important saves. Gunners took the lead in the 57th minute through 18-year-old Ethan Nwaneri. Substitute Bukayo Saka put the result beyond doubt in the 76th minute. Following a driving run by Jurriën Timber, Andre Harriman-Annous's shot was saved by the Brighton keeper, but Saka reacted quickly to smash home the rebound.
EFL Cup Quater-Final Draw
- Arsenal vs. Crystal Palace
- Cardiff City vs. Chelsea
- Manchester City vs. Brentford
- Newcastle United vs. Fulham