The 2024/25 Carabao Cup quarter-finals start today with three games being played this evening and one game being played tomorrow. Eight teams remain and all have a strong chance of winning the tournament.
Arsenal vs Crystal Palace
Arsenal welcome Crystal Palace to the Emirates Stadium for the first match of the quarter-final stage (Kick off 2:30pm ET/11:30 pm PT).
Mikel Arteta's side will want to win this game because this tournament could be their best chance at winning a trophy this season. Should they emerge triumphant it would also be the second non-community shield trophy win of the Mikel Arteta era. They had not advanced past the fourth round of either the League Cup or FA Cup since 2020 before they beat Preston North End to advance to the quarter-finals.
Meanwhile, Oliver Glasner will want to take advantage of Crystal Palace's cracking recent form (four wins, four draws, one loss since October 27th) and steal a win against an Arsenal side struggling to score from open play. Palace have beaten Tottenham, Aston Villa, Brighton, and Manchester City in recent weeks, so a win for the Eagles is certainly on the cards.
Team News
Arsenal will be without Oleksandr Zinchenko and Riccardo Calafiori which means Myles Lewis-Skelly is likely to start his third game in a row at left-back. Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White are also injured.
Crystal Palace are still without their young midfield maestro Adam Wharton, with Rob Holding and Matheus Franca also missing out through injury.
You can catch the game on Paramount+ with kick-off at 2:30 pm ET/11:30 pm ET.
Newcastle United vs Brentford
The second match of the quarter-final stage sees Brentford make the long trip up to Newcastle (Kick off 2:45 pm ET/11:45 pm PT).
Newcastle United could take a step closer to ending a 70-year trophy drought if they beat Brentford at St James' Park. Eddie Howe's side have been somewhat up and down this season as they have failed to become a consistent team. This game however could be a strong opportunity to get them to their second league cup final in three seasons.
Thomas Frank's Brentford recently beat Newcastle United at the Gtech Community Stadium and they are currently undefeated at home. However, their away record, which is more relevant to today's game, isn't ideal as they have won one game away from home all season, an EFL Cup 2nd round win over League Two Colchester United.
Team News
Newcastle United will be without Nick Pope, Sven Botman, and Callum Wilson.
Brentford's Vitaly Janelt is likely to return whilst Mathias Jensen is not. Aaron Hickey, Rico Henry, and Josh DaSilva are all out until 2025.
You can catch the game on CBS Sports Network, Paramount+, and Fubo. Kick-off is at 2:45 pm ET/11:45 pm PT.
Southampton vs Liverpool
The third and final match on Wednesday's lineup of action sees Liverpool take on the managerless Southampton.
Southampton, who as mentioned are still without a manager, have done well to get this far in the tournament despite their struggles in the Premier League this season. Southampton haven't won since their last-minute 3-2 victory over Stoke City in the fourth round. This game will also be a struggle for them given Liverpool are quite possibly the top team in Europe so far this season.
Arne Slot's Liverpool might not need to be at their best to beat Southampton given their managerless state and sorry form over the recent months. Liverpool have been excellent all season under their new manager who has managed to keep the side's offensive explosiveness that was a hallmark under Jurgen Klopp whilst shoring up a defense whose standards had dropped during the latter years of Klopp's reign.
Team News
Interim manager Simon Rusk has a huge task on his hands and that was before tackling the growing number of injuries Southampton have. Both the first and second-choice goalkeepers (Gavin Bazunu and Aaron Ramsdale) are injured whilst Jack Stephens and Adam Armstrong are suspended for this fixture.
Liverpool will be without Conor Bradley, Ibrahima Konate, and Andy Robertson. Kostas Tsimikas is also a doubt which means Joe Gomez is likely to play at left-back.
The game is available to watch on Paramount+. Kick-off is at 3pm ET/12pm PT.
Tottenham vs Manchester United
In arguably the biggest fixture of the quarter-finals, Ruben Amorim's Red Devils travel to North London to take on fellow midtable side, Tottenham Hotspur.
It has been a tough sophomore season for Ange Postecoglu at Spurs. The fans are beginning to lose their patience as yet another season seems to be slipping away into mediocrity and yet, they still have a brilliant chance at winning a trophy, which Postecoglu managed to do a lot in his second season at a club.
Manchester United are also struggling to get back to where they think they should belong in the Premier League but their performance in cup competitions in recent years has been strong. They last won the League Cup in 2023, beating fellow 2024/25 quarter-finalists Newcastle United, and they won the FA Cup last season. Amorim has the chance to continue this trend but two big clubs clashing together always poses big challenges.
Team News
Destiny Udogie and Son-Heung Min could be available after picking up knocks at the weekend. Meanwhile, Micky van de Ven, Christian Romero, Gugliemo Vicario, Richarlison, Rodrigo Bentancur, Wilson Odobert, and Ben Davies are all unavailable for selection.
Manchester United will be without Mason Mount and Luke Shaw. Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho could return to the lineup after being dropped for the Manchester derby.
The match will be available to watch on Thursday 19th December on Paramount+. Kick-off will be at 3pm ET/12pm PT.
