EFL Cup best of 32 is about to begin tonight, and we decided to scroll through some of the most anticipated matches of this round. This is also the round where the best Premier League teams will join in after they got a bye in the first two rounds.
Arsenal – Nottingham Forest
The Gunners must be feeling very confident after 3–2 victory over Aston Villa on Sunday. Many players will surely rest, and we know that Lacazzete won’t be playing due to an ankle injury he is still recovering from. Despite that, Arsenal is a heavy favourite against Nottingham, who are currently sixth in the Championship.
Preston – Manchester City
Manchester City is defending the title won last year in the EFL Cup, and they will start their campaign against Preston. The home team defeated Bradford in the first round and got the better of Hull after a penalty shootout in the second. The Citizens will come out with a mixed squad as this is a perfect opportunity for coach Guardiola to test out some of his younger players.
Watford – Swansea
Watford got crushed by Manchester City last weekend by 8–0, and this will be a chance to forget about the embarrassing loss and the fact that they are currently at the bottom of the Premier League standings. Swansea, on the other hand, failed to score a goal in the previous two Championship matches, so both teams will be looking to leave a good impression on their fans after a few bad weeks.
Manchester United – Rochdale
The Red Devils are facing another disappointing PL season after they lost to West Ham a few days ago, but they have a decent-looking draw in the EFL Cup that can spike some confidence back into the squad. United’s opponent is Rochdale from League One, so anything apart from Manchester’s big win will be very surprising.
Full Schedule
Tuesday, 19.45 (local time):
Arsenal – Nottingham
Colchester – Tottenham
Crawley – Stoke
Luton – Leicester
Portsmouth – Southampton
Preston – Manchester City
Sheffield Wednesday – Everton
Watford – Swansea
Wednesday, 19.45 (local time):
Brighton – Aston Villa
Burton – Bournemouth
Chelsea – Grimsby
Milton Keynes – Liverpool
Oxford Utd – West Ham
Sheffield Utd – Sunderland
Wolves – Reading
Wednesday, 20.00 (local time):
Manchester Utd – Rochdale
