⚽ EFL Carabao Cup 2025/26 Season

[SatoPrincess]

Arsenal could have scored many more goals. Crystal Palace owe a lot to their reserve goalkeeper Benítez. He must be like the man of the match even. 

We could have scored, but we didn't. The Crystal Palace reserve goalkeeper was good, but if we had been better in front of goal, we could have breached their goal a couple of times with our attacks. So we couldn't win without penalties, not because of the goalkeeper but because we were poor in front of the goal.

That should give us concern; we need to be more clinical with the chances we create.

Arsenal have been treading on thin ice this month, they usually fall off in December but they have managed to hold it together this year. Personally I don’t think it was a bad result, it was a wake up call that the players need to be more clinical in front of goal and score their chances. From the last two matches, it appears to me that Arteta has added own goal to his dark arts.

[Callido]

Arsenal have been performing very well this season from the beginning till now. Arsenal are at the top of the points table so far. If they continue to perform like this then maybe they can win all the trophies this season. Arsenal cannot be compared to any other team this season so far. Because Arsenal are in very good form at the moment and they are going through a very good winning streak. Every part of them is very strong and their attacking part is very strong. Arsenal are very good at getting points they know how to collect points

It's likely impossible that Arsenal will be performing very well in this season and after everything, unable to win at least one trophy. If Newcastle defeats Manchester City, Arsenal's toughest game will be against Chelsea, but if Manchester City wins, that means it will be a really dense qualification process and unlikelyhood of winning the Carabao Cup.

[SatoPrincess]

Arsenal has qualified to the finals, they were able to break the deadlock on the 79th minutes after several attempts that was stopped by Benitez. The goal was an own goal from Lacroix after the corner kick from Arsenal.

Palace wouldn't be able to put themselves back in the game because they ain't creating any chance to show that they're capable of finding the back of the net. Palace was hoping to end the game in a penalty but the own goal stole that opportunity from them.

Arsenal 1-0 Palace.

Arsenal had a good first half while Crystal Palace were the better team in the second half. Benitez was incredible in that match, I never knew he was that good. Kepa on the hand wasn’t impressive at all, I’m convinced Raya is a better goalie. Good thing Arteta field Raya today against Brighton.

[Pulsar77]

There are 2 weeks ahead before the semi final matches to be played in the EFL Cup. The first matches:

• Newcastle - Manchester City
• Chelsea - Arsenal

The underdogs have the home advantage in the first fixtures. This is important for them honestly. Because this could be the only opportunity for them to gain a good advantage for final stage.

Do you expect any of Newcastle and Chelsea to qualify? I don't but still we could watch really competitive matches.

[khiholangkang]

There are 2 weeks ahead before the semi final matches to be played in the EFL Cup. The first matches:

• Newcastle - Manchester City
• Chelsea - Arsenal

The underdogs have the home advantage in the first fixtures. This is important for them honestly. Because this could be the only opportunity for them to gain a good advantage for final stage.

Do you expect any of Newcastle and Chelsea to qualify? I don't but still we could watch really competitive matches.

The semifinals are always tense, Chelsea and Newcastle are not easy to qualify, I think the ones who will definitely qualify are Manchester City and Arsenal because Arsenal has had a decline in the last few matches, especially their defense line and midfield which is lacking or is in decline, just pay attention that Arsenal can still be compromised like against Brighton and Wolves, but Manchester City is still standing strong with a better win.

Those who will be in the final are Manchester City and Chelsea, statistically the favorites to win are Arsenal and Manchester City in the first and second legs but the underdog team may still be able to fight back and the only one who can do it is Chelsea, this could be a betting option.

[Lida93]

Arsenal could have scored many more goals. Crystal Palace owe a lot to their reserve goalkeeper Benítez. He must be like the man of the match even. 

We could have scored, but we didn't. The Crystal Palace reserve goalkeeper was good, but if we had been better in front of goal, we could have breached their goal a couple of times with our attacks. So we couldn't win without penalties, not because of the goalkeeper but because we were poor in front of the goal.

That should give us concern; we need to be more clinical with the chances we create.

Arsenal had many chances at goal on that day, but couldn't really utilise them, Crystal palace were very solid on defence trying to resist Arsenal which they did but were unlucky not to have won on penalties as Arsenal became extremely lucky during the penalty shootout where they saw off Crystal palace who missed one of their penalty giving Arsenal the opportunity to progress to the next round thereby increasing their chances of securing a trophy at the end of the season.

[Distraction]

Truthfully Newcastle shouldn't be underestimated in the EFL Cup. Why? Because they are already the last champions of this cup.    They eliminated Arsenal in the semi finals and Liverpool in the final.

Manchester City is also a huge challenge for them of course. But I don't see it that certain for them to get past Newcastle. I even believe Newcastle will win at St James' Park in the first leg.

[Akbarkoe]

Truthfully Newcastle shouldn't be underestimated in the EFL Cup. Why? Because they are already the last champions of this cup.    They eliminated Arsenal in the semi finals and Liverpool in the final.

Manchester City is also a huge challenge for them of course. But I don't see it that certain for them to get past Newcastle. I even believe Newcastle will win at St James' Park in the first leg.

In 2023, Newcastle could only be runners up in second place because they lost to Manchester United in the final and in 2024 they managed to register their name as winners of the Carabao league by beating Liverpool with a score of 2-1.
Can they repeat it this season? I see that Manchester City are not playing around in the semi-final match, they intend to chase the treble winner in the current season so they will maximize this league as one of them.
If Newcastle wins that would really be crazy and it can be assumed that they are more focused on this league match than concentrating on the English Premier League which today Newcastle is not in a good position in terms of standings.

[Oluwa-btc]

There are 2 weeks ahead before the semi final matches to be played in the EFL Cup. The first matches:

• Newcastle - Manchester City
• Chelsea - Arsenal

The underdogs have the home advantage in the first fixtures. This is important for them honestly. Because this could be the only opportunity for them to gain a good advantage for final stage.

Do you expect any of Newcastle and Chelsea to qualify? I don't but still we could watch really competitive matches.

Damn right, Newcastle United are obviously one of thr best sides this season whenever playing homes games. They've recently beaten Manchester City this season at home, so expecting a shock is not something I anticipate. They've done that, they couget it done again.

What I expect is a Newcastle United versus Arsenal finals.

Arsenal might not be in the best shape at the moment, but I'm certain they'll ace this fixture.

[Sarah Azhari]

There are 2 weeks ahead before the semi final matches to be played in the EFL Cup. The first matches:

• Newcastle - Manchester City
• Chelsea - Arsenal

The underdogs have the home advantage in the first fixtures. This is important for them honestly. Because this could be the only opportunity for them to gain a good advantage for final stage.

Do you expect any of Newcastle and Chelsea to qualify? I don't but still we could watch really competitive matches.

I predict Newcastle and Chelsea will advance to the final because Arsenal and Manchester City will certainly not be serious in this competition and they always rotate their players when competing in the Carabao Cup. Arsenal and Manchester City are more concerned with the Premier League title than the Carabao Cup, and this presents an opportunity for Newcastle and Chelsea to win a trophy this season, given that they have no chance of winning the Premier League title.

[X-ray]

Ma bet for the upcoming EFL games. Firstly, City is gonna win the game. I know they had hard time in the last game against Forest, but i don't think they will lose to Newcastle which is underperform. Everybody in the squad is fully fit. I think my bet on City will capitalize.

As for Arsenal vs Chelsea, they're both still perform bad, but i rated Chelsea in the worsen position than Arsenal due to inconsistency. However, a cup game is often different than league game. So i expect Arsenal gets a tough game for Chelsea. I believe both teams will be scoring, and i don't think game will end with the draw(FT).

What's your prediction on these games?

[Webetcoins]

Ma bet for the upcoming EFL games. Firstly, City is gonna win the game. I know they had hard time in the last game against Forest, but i don't think they will lose to Newcastle which is underperform. Everybody in the squad is fully fit. I think my bet on City will capitalize.

As for Arsenal vs Chelsea, they're both still perform bad, but i rated Chelsea in the worsen position than Arsenal due to inconsistency. However, a cup game is often different than league game. So i expect Arsenal gets a tough game for Chelsea. I believe both teams will be scoring, and i don't think game will end with the draw(FT).

What's your prediction on these games?

Both the semifinals are going to be having home and away games. Because of this, giving prediction is not easy, even Manchester City is having good advantage, and they can easily go through against Newcastle United which is having poor form since last few weeks.

But it's still going to be interesting game between them while Chelsea vs Arsenal is also not easy to predict but recent sudden worst performance from Chelsea giving good advantage to Arsenal which is having good consistency and results despite having injuries issues.

For me most chances Arsenal vs Manchester City final is going to be played because both are trying their best for the trophy.

[nelson4lov]

~Snip
[...]

What's your prediction on these games?

I have no issue with your bet. City will likely win because they're yet to win something in the last year so I'm sure they really want to make it to the finals. As far the BTTS for the Arsenal vs Chelsea game, it's not bad. I'm not a fan of BTTS but that's just a personal thing. You'll likely win it as both arsenal and Chelsea are good for the goals.

My prediction would be:
City win
Arsenal win.

I fancy seeing Arsenal going head to head with city in the cup final.

[Rruchi man]

What's your prediction on these games?

Just as in some other seasons, injuries have been our major challenge this season; what has been saving us is the squad depth that we have, something different from other seasons.

Before the Arsenal against Chelsea game, if Arsenal is able to keep its squad free from injuries and have all first-team options available as well as adequate quality substitutions on the bench, they should be able to oppress and defeat Chelsea both home and away.

We are the superior team.

[Sandra_hakeem]

Let's forget sentiment, for real Arteta needs to stop this crap of sitting back and parking the bus while inviting pressure,it never ends well..if this was a league match they would have dropped 2 points. I'm saying this because they keep struggling to score in every game!
I think it's because they are beginning to lack confidence at the final third, and I expect Arteta to notice it and work towards it. Secondly, they need to be more sharp and quick in front of goal, finally they should be more aggressive both in defence and in attack especially at the dieing minutes in every game because that's when they always concede.

Martinelli's skills were on full display! He played like a true Brazilian in the match, showcasing his agility, pace, and technical skills. His dribbling and ball control allowed him to navigate through tight spaces and create scoring opportunities for Arsenal.
Now it's arsenal time to face chelsea at semi finals.

[Berry2d]

Let's forget sentiment, for real Arteta needs to stop this crap of sitting back and parking the bus while inviting pressure,it never ends well..if this was a league match they would have dropped 2 points. I'm saying this because they keep struggling to score in every game!
I think it's because they are beginning to lack confidence at the final third, and I expect Arteta to notice it and work towards it. Secondly, they need to be more sharp and quick in front of goal, finally they should be more aggressive both in defence and in attack especially at the dieing minutes in every game because that's when they always concede.

Martinelli's skills were on full display! He played like a true Brazilian in the match, showcasing his agility, pace, and technical skills. His dribbling and ball control allowed him to navigate through tight spaces and create scoring opportunities for Arsenal.
Now it's arsenal time to face chelsea at semi finals.

As for the issue of lacking confidence at a certain stage, its the culture of Arsenal which have been a problem in the team for some seasons now. On getting to a place where bagging a trophy is sure for arsenal they always lose confidence in themselves with believe they can't make it to the top that is the only reason why they have been losing great opportunities in the last few season which if they dont tackle that spirit of failure the same may still repeat itself this season if time is not taken.