Fleetwood Town Stun Arsenal on Penalties to Knock Premier League Champions Out of Carabao Cup
League Two side Fleetwood Town knocked reigning Premier League champions Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup on penalties, winning the shootout 5-3 after a 1-1 draw in the fourth round at Highbury Stadium on October 27.
Fleetwood, who sit 18th in League Two, took the lead in the 21st minute. Fulham loanee Aaron Loupalo-Bi slotted the ball past Arsenal goalkeeper Illan Meslier. The match had been briefly held up earlier in the first half when a drone flew over the ground. Arsenal, who had made a lot of changes to their team, struggled to find any fluency before the break.
The introduction of Martin Odegaard changed the tempo for the visitors. Arsenal looked far more dangerous in the second half and drew level in the 50th minute. Viktor Gyokeres managed to turn the ball in for his first goal of the season. Arsenal continued to press for a winner, but Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch made several big saves to keep the score level. Late in the match, Arsenal teenager Max Dowman was sent off, and Mikel Arteta was left furious on the touchline.
The game went to a penalty shootout, which Fleetwood won 5-3. Lynch saved Bruno Guimaraes' spot-kick, and 19-year-old defender Conor Haughey scored the winning penalty to send Highbury into raptures.
The result is a massive upset. It is the first time that the reigning Premier League champions have been knocked out of the League Cup by a fourth-tier side. There are 84 places between the two clubs in the English football pyramid, and Fleetwood had been priced as heavy underdogs by bookmakers before kick-off.
Arsenal came into the tie after a 2-0 win over Everton on Saturday that took them level on points with Manchester City at the top of the Premier League. Their focus now shifts back to the league. They visit Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, November 1.
Fleetwood move into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup. The club had already reached the fourth round for the first time earlier this season, and they have now gone one step further with a result that will be remembered for years in Lancashire.