Carabao Cup Quarter-Finals: Match Previews

by , 10 January 2023

The Carabao Cup returns this week at the quarter-final stage with eight clubs battling to earn a semi-final place. Join us as we preview the action between Newcastle v Leicester, Manchester United v Charlton, Manchester City v Southampton and Nottingham Forest v Wolves.

A footballer with the Carabao Cup logo shown

Next month the first domestic final of the season, the Carabao Cup final, takes place. This week we will be closer to learning who will be playing as the quarter-finals take place on Tuesday and Wednesday. Ahead of the games, we preview the four fixtures taking place.

Newcastle Vs Leicester City Carabao Cup Quarter-Final

Newcastle United will be hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 2 – 1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup. However, the Magpies still have hopes for silverware in the EFL Cup, hoping to earn a reward for their impressive run in the Premier League, where they sit third.

They have won two games against AFC Bournemouth and Tranmere Rovers by a single-goal margin and beat Crystal Palace on penalties. They have been playing great football, and a game against the Foxes offers an excellent opportunity to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 1976.

Eddie Howe has led his side to just two defeats in all competitions this season, both coming away from home.

Jamaal Lascelles has lost his starting place in the Magpies team but has been a regular in domestic competition, keeping them solid at the back, even scoring against Tranmere Rovers.

Leicester City is yet to concede a goal in the EFL Cup and will be against Newcastle United, who have stolen their moniker in the Premier League of being ‘the best out of the rest’.

The Foxes have been fabulous in the domestic competition despite their horrible form in the league. A game against Newcastle will be the first time they face a team above League One level, thus being their first real test. They have won all their three games against MK Dons, Newport, and Stockport County by an aggregate score of 7 – 0.

Brendan Rodgers will hope they avoid their league performances, and it won’t affect their form in domestic competition as they hope to reignite their season in a looming relegation battle. Jamie Vardy has scored three goals in two appearances in the EFL Cup and is the Foxes’ best outlet in front of the goal.

Manchester United Vs Charlton Carabao Cup Quarter-Final

Manchester United will be hoping for a double success in domestic competition after reaching the fourth round of the FA Cup after a 3 – 1 victory against Everton on Friday.

The Addicks stand between them and the semi-final of the EFL Cup, having gone through Aston Villa and Burnley to reach this stage. However, the five-time winners are eyeing to triumph for the first time since 2017, having suffered back-to-back semi-final exits to Manchester City in 2020 and 2021.

Their previous two quarter-final elimination have been against teams in the lower division; thus, Eric Ten Hag has to be cautious in his approach against Charlton. However, the Red Devils have been in fine form, winning the last five games in all competitions, winning all their eight home games and scoring twenty-one goals.

Marcus Rashford scored a goal in the previous five consecutive games and two in the EFL and has been resourceful in their resurgence.

Charlton has never progressed to the last four of the EFL Cup in the 118-year history.

They only reached the quarter-finals once before the 2006-07 season, which saw them lose 1 – 0 to Wycombe. The Addicks are the only non-Premier League side still in the competition and will have a tough test at the Theatre of Dreams.

Their best performance against Manchester United at Old Trafford was a goalless draw back in 2002, losing all their ten recent meetings.

They have needed penalty shoot-out to progress against Brighton, Queens Park Rangers, and Stevenage, with their only win in regular time coming against Walsall. However, Scott Fraser has been on fine form with three goal involvements (two goals, one assist) in the last two games that could inspire a memorable win.

Manchester City Vs Southampton Carabao Cup Quarter-Final

Manchester City has endured the most challenging run of games to qualify for the quarter-finals. They beat Chelsea 2 – 0 in the third round in a game they dominated convincingly in all aspects of the match. The round of sixteen saw the Citizens play their perennial rivals Liverpool fighting hard for a 3 – 2 win to book a place in the last eight.

The greatest challenge they face will be playing away from home for the first time in the competition.

Riyad Mahrez is the player to watch, having scored in all two games in this competition. The Algerian is in fine form with four-goal involvements (three goals, one assist) in the last three games and can potentially be the game-changer in this encounter.

Southampton sits bottom of the Premier League and will enjoy a day out of the relegation struggle to face title-chasing Manchester City.

They have enjoyed a successful ride to the last eight winning their three games which started with a 3 – 0 win against Cambridge United, a 2 – 1 win against Sheffield United and in penalties after a 1 – 1 draw against Lincoln. However, the Saints have their most significant challenge against a top-tier side. It would be interesting to see if they will feature with a solid squad to battle the Premier League champions or save their best for the relegation battle.

Che Adams has scored four of his side’s six goals scoring a brace on two occasions is the one to watch.

Nottingham Forest Vs Wolves Carabao Cup Quarter-Final

Nottingham Forest has won by at least two goals in their last three games. They will be hoping to avoid a second consecutive elimination from domestic competition after they were humbled 4 – 1 by Blackpool in the FA Cup.

Steve Cooper opted to rest most of his first-team players to save them for the Premier League but saw his side humbled by the Championship side. We expect them to risk fielding a strong side as they will be featuring against a Premier League side as they hope to reach the semi-finals of the EFL Cup for the first time since 1991-92, where they got the finals.

The four-time EFL winners have scored a competition high nine goals this season in their success over Grimsby, Tottenham and Blackburn Rovers, conceding just once. Jesse Lingard has four goal involvements (two goals, two assists) in the last two games in the EFL Cup and has been playing his best football in the competition he won with Man United in 2017. It will be a huge relief if the Englishman recovers in time to feature.

Wolves managed to take Liverpool to a reply after drawing 2 – 2 against Liverpool in the FA Cup third round. However, a scandalous VAR decision that scrapped the Wolves winner made them add another fixture to their busy schedule plagued with a relegation battle.

The Wanderers have not won against thorny Forest in the last six games at the City Ground and will be hoping to get a result and progress to the quarter-finals for the first time in twenty-seven years. They beat them 4 – 0 in their last encounter in this tournament, and winning 1 – 0 in the Premier League will be an excellent, motivating factor to carry to the game.

Adama Traore has scored the all-important winning goal in their games against Leeds United (1 – 0) and Preston (2 – 1).

The Newcastle Vs Leicester City and the Manchester United Vs Charlton games are played on Tuesday. Manchester City Vs Southampton and Nottingham Forest Vs Wolves is on Wednesday.

Similar Posts

By visiting our website, you are declaring that you are 18+ and agree to our Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy, and to accept our use of Cookies. This website contains advertisement.

Got it!