Carabao Cup third-round draw: Man Utd, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool discover fate

The Carabao Cup third-round draw has been made, with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and holders Liverpool all discovering their fate.

The seven English clubs competing in Europe this season automatically progressed to the third round, with the 13 other Premier League sides involved in second-round games.

Liverpool are the Carabao Cup holders having beaten Chelsea 1-0 in last year’s final at Wembley.

That trophy was won under Jurgen Klopp and the Anfield legend’s replacement, Arne Slot, will get his first taste of Carabao Cup action against West Ham.

West Ham progressed to the third round after scoring a late winner in their second-round clash against Bournemouth at the London Stadium.

In another all-Premier League third-round tie, Everton play host to Southampton.

Premier League champions Manchester City, meanwhile, will face Watford and Arsenal play host to League One side Bolton.

Another League One outfit in Barnsley travel to Old Trafford to face Manchester United while League Two minnows Barrow will enjoy a day out at Stamford Bridge against big-spending Chelsea.

Wimbledon produced one of the upsets of the competition on Wednesday night, beating newly-promoted Premier League side Ipswich Town on penalties, and have been rewarded with a home tie against another top-flight club in Newcastle, who also needed penalties to overcome Nottingham Forest.

The Carabao Cup has undergone a major change this season in response to a new format being used in European competitions.

As teams in the Champions League and Europa League will play more fixtures, the third round of the Carabao Cup will now be played across a fortnight in the weeks commending September 16 and 23.

Moreover, teams competing in the Champions League and Europa League will not be drawn against each other to avoid fixture clash.

As a result, Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Manchester United and Tottenham will be drawn first from a separate bowl to ensure they do not meet followed by the remaining 26 clubs.

Explaining the changes, the FA said: ‘Carabao Cup Round Three fixtures will take place W/C 16 & 23 September, with fixtures in the Champions League (W/C 16 September) and Europa League (W/C 23 September) also scheduled during this period.

‘The additional dates required in the calendar for European competitions are as a result of an increased number of games for the 2024/25 season.

‘To ensure there is no clash of fixture dates, conditions will be implemented during the Round Three draw to ensure a Club participating in the Champions League does not draw a Club participating in the Europa League, to enable the Round Three fixtures to take place in the alternate week.

‘The Round Three draw consists of 32 Clubs – 25 winners from Round Two with the seven Premier League Clubs in UEFA competitions also entering in this round. 

‘The UEFA Conference League, a competition Chelsea FC could be participating in, is due to begin in October and therefore has no impact on the Carabao Cup Round Three draw.’

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