Just 16 teams remain in the EFL Cup and this week that number will be halved. There are still plenty of big names remaining, and a few smaller ones, all of which will be dreaming of a place in the Wembley final in February.
We bring you previews of West Ham United v Arsenal, Bournemouth v Liverpool, Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United v Newcastle United, along with our top football betting tips.
Key Fixtures
West Ham United v Arsenal
Arsenal haven’t lifted the EFL Cup since 1993, and although Arsenal fans won’t be losing sleep over it, they will be feeling like success in this competition is overdue.
League Cup ties usually mean rotation for England’s biggest sides who all typically have bigger fish to fry, and after handing a debut to Charles Sagoe Jr. in the last round, it will be interesting to see whether Mikel Arteta puts faith in his squad depth again.
West Ham meanwhile have never won this competition and will need to turn around their recent form if they are to have any hope of doing so this time around. The Hammers are winless in 4, with defeats in their last 3, and Sunday’s home defeat against Everton represented the first time in 2023 that they have failed to score in a home game.
A defeat at the hands of the Gunners typically wouldn’t set too many alarm bells ringing at West Ham, particularly in a competition which is typically considered only the third biggest prize in English football. However, West Ham need a positive result, or at least a positive performance, to start to turn the tide of negativity that currently engulfs the London club.
After both scraping through with 1-0 victories in the previous round, it will be interesting to see how West Ham fare against a likely-rotated Arsenal. Arsenal are unbeaten domestically this campaign and will likely at least keep some big names on the bench to use if needed. We expect West Ham’s run of defeats to continue in a tight affair.
Prediction: West Ham United 1-2 Arsenal
Bournemouth v Liverpool
Bournemouth finally managed a first Premier League win of the season at the weekend thanks to a 2-1 victory over Burnley. They will be looking to build on that momentum with a giant killing at the Vitality Stadium ahead of Saturday’s visit to Manchester City.
The Cherries have already tasted victory through 2 rounds of this competition, eliminating Swansea City and Stoke City in the process, and will be hoping to continue their cup-run against a much stronger opposition this time out.
Liverpool, winners of the competition 2 years ago, made light work of Nottingham Forest at the weekend. They may rotate in this one, but with a fixture against struggling Luton to come on Sunday, they won’t feel the need to rest too many players.
Relative to the quality of their team in recent years, it could be argued that Liverpool’s trophy haul under Jurgen Klopp is something of an underperformance, despite winning every available trophy at least once. The Red’s will be hoping that this years Carabao Cup can be another avenue to silverware, particularly with Manchester City already out of the competition.
We expect another strong performance from the Reds in this one, but they will face resistance from the home side. This could be a tight contest, but if Liverpool do rotate, should maintain a strong enough bench that they can turn to in order to see them over the line.
Prediction: Bournemouth 0-2 Liverpool
Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers
The Premier League’s 11th place side take on the Championship’s 12th place side in Wednesday’s clash at Stamford Bridge.
It’s difficult to predict anything surrounding Chelsea with any certainty at the moment. An encouraging run of performances gave hope they may finally be turning things around under Mauricio Pochettino, until Saturday’s defeat to Brentford sent them crashing back down to Earth.
The Blues have only lost once to lower-league opposition in the past 15 years, but worryingly, have shown an inability to break down weaker opposition so far this season. Additionally, the last 16 has been something of a bogey-round for Chelsea, and has seen them eliminated in 4 of their past 8 campaigns.
Blackburn travel to London as the leading scorers in this years competition having managed 17 goals in just 3 games so far. They’ll be cautious of playing such positive football against this Chelsea side though, and will likely opt to try to keep things tight at the back, choosing their moments to attack carefully.
The Rovers did win the EFL Cup back in 2002, but haven’t made the quarter final stage since 2011/12. They’ll be hopeful of heaping further dismay on a Chelsea side who are likely to rest key players in preparation for their tricky upcoming run in the Premier League.
We expect Blackburn to be up for this one, but Chelsea’s quality should shine through. Those Chelsea players who come in with rotation will be eager to show they deserve a chance to help turn around the club’s league form, and an early goal could see this become a routine victory for Pochettino’s men.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Blackburn
Manchester United v Newcastle United
The highlight fixture of the round sees two of the Premier League’s top sides fight it out for a place in the quarter finals.
Just 2 points separate the sides in the Premier League heading into this repeat of last year’s final, and Erik Ten Hag will be looking for his men to respond following Sunday’s resounding defeat in the Manchester Derby.
United have performed well in the EFL Cup in recent years, and may field a strong lineup in this one. The domestic cups are likely to be Man United’s main hopes of silverware this season and they’ll be eager to avoid elimination at the hands of a Newcastle side who have already defeated their neighbours in this year’s competition.
Newcastle meanwhile will be seeking revenge following defeat in last year’s final. They’ll head into the game with confidence after their shock 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the last round, but will likely have one eye on Saturday’s clash with Arsenal at St James’s Park.
The Magpies have already shown this season that they are capable of fighting on multiple fronts, and will fancy their chances of advancing to the quarter finals at what is likely to be a nervous Old Trafford.
This feels like a much bigger fixture for Man United than it does the visitors and a bright start is key in keeping the home fans from getting any more restless. Newcastle will be hoping to end a major domestic trophy drought which stretches back to 1955, but will likely be more concerned with avoiding losing any more ground on the top 4 on Saturday.
Therefore, we expect Manchester United to field a stronger side than their Geordie visitors, which should make the difference and see them rewarded with victory.
Prediction: Manchester United 1-0 Newcastle United
Betting Tips
Carabao Cup Acca Tip:
- Mansfield Town v Port Vale – Mansfield Town to Win
- Exeter v Middlesbrough – Middlesbrough to Win to Nil
- Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers – Chelsea to Win
- Everton v Burnley – Everton to Win
- Ipswich Town v Fulham – Ipswich to Win
35.64/1 at Bet365
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