A flurry of goals as Premier League clubs run riot
Wednesday night’s action saw three games and 14 goals. Arsenal were very impressive, despite playing an under-strength West Brom, who made 11 changes, and gave out five debuts.
It was a rout as Bukayo Saka impressed and scored in a 6-0 win at the Hawthorns.
Pepe and Lacazette also scored but Saka’s performance was overshadowed by a Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hat-trick. It was an important confidence-booster for Arsenal and manager Mikel Arteta, who needed a result after back-to-back defeats in the Premier League.
Arsenal’s win was impressive, but Southampton outshone them. The Saints claimed an 8-0 triumph away at Newport County; their biggest away victory in the club’s history.
Celebrating #SaintsFC‘s biggest away victory, ever 😇 pic.twitter.com/AiZ6grSUuh
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) August 25, 2021
Forgotten Saints winger Mohamed Elyounoussi claimed a second half hat-trick as well as two assists in the game.
Armando Broja, on loan from Chelsea, claimed a brace with strikes also coming from Nathan Tella, Kyle Walker-Peters and Nathan Redmond.
Burnley and Newcastle played out a goalless draw before the Clarets came out on top on penalties.
Vieira still without a win; Villa hit Barrow for six
Vicarage Road on Tuesday night saw one of only two all Premier League round two ties take place. Watford and Crystal Palace both made wholesale changes and it showed.
A very cagey first half was summed up by striker Jean Philippe Mateta’s headed chance being cleared off the line before finally being tipped over the bar by Ben Foster.
The second half looked exactly like the first with Watford needlessly giving the ball away and Palace seemingly looking unlikely to take advantage due to what looked like poor quality in the final third.
Imran Louza and Danny Rose were impressive for the Hornets, with the latter making his first appearance since signing in the summer.
One plus for Palace was the performance of loanee Conor Gallagher. He certainly covered a lot of ground before he was needlessly booked and later substituted, however his tenacity can only be admired.
The game wasn’t a classic and looked destined for penalties until a late break in the 86th minute from Watford saw Cucho Hernandez deliver a cross for another debutant, Ashley Fletcher, to finish from close range.
Patrick Vieira is still without a win as Crystal Palace manager, with his team yet to score so far this season.
Other results on Tuesday saw a young Aston Villa side dispatch of Barrow 6-0, with young striker Cameron Archer bagging a hat-trick in a game which included a cheeky Panenka penalty from Anwar El-Ghazi.
Premier League new boys Norwich also claimed a 6-0 win. This one was a little more surprising as they did so against championship Bournemouth.
Wolves claimed an impressive 4-0 win at Nottingham Forest, with two late goals from Trincao and academy product Morgan Gibbs-White.
Leeds and Brentford were two Premier League sides to score three against lower league opposition, with the latter given a scare as they fell behind only to win 3-1 against League Two Forest Green Rovers.
Leeds played a strong side and took 79 minutes to open the scoring against League One Crewe, with goals coming from Kalvin Phillips and a brace from Jack Harrison.
The game was significant as Adam Forshaw played just over an hour for Leeds for his first appearance in over 18 months after horrific injury problems.
There were also positive results for Premier League Brighton and Everton on Tuesday, with wins over Cardiff and Huddersfield respectively.
Swansea bagged four in a convincing 4-1 victory over Plymouth, with Morgan Whittaker bagging a late 11-minute hat trick.
Fulham have started their Championship season brilliantly, and they disposed of Birmingham with a 2-0 victory at St Andrews.
Jay Stansfield with his first senior goal and Antonee Robinson getting them to round three, with 18-year-old Kosovan Adrion Pajaziti making his first senior appearance for the Cottagers.
Millwall, QPR, Preston and Stoke were other Championship sides who avoided upsets against lower league opposition, beating Cambridge, Oxford, Morecambe and Doncaster respectively.
Sheffield United saw off Derby with a 2-1 victory, Sunderland knocked out Championship opposition in Blackpool, who were pegged back late on, but even later, striker Aidan O’Brien secured his hat trick in stoppage time, securing them a 3-2 victory.
They will be one of only five sides representing League One in round three, with Cheltenham, AFC Wimbledon, Wigan and Wycombe also making it through.
The Robins needed penalties against Gillingham whereas Wimbledon secured a 1-0 victory at Northampton, with Anthony Hartigan striking in the fourth minute of added time.
Wigan needed penalties to beat Bolton in a local derby, after it had finished 0-0 in normal time.
Wycombe came through on penalties too against League Two Stevenage, after it finished 2-2 after normal time. Rochdale and Oldham also made it through, after Dale won 2-0 against 10-man Shrewsbury and Oldham holding League one Accrington to a 0-0 draw, before coming through on penalties.
Round three draw
Wednesday evening also saw the draw for round three, which is the stage the clubs involved in European competitions enter.
Your Round Three ties are confirmed!#EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/Ell5b28836
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) August 25, 2021
Holders Manchester City were given a home tie against Wycombe to begin. An all Premier League encounter at Carrow Road and Old Trafford as Norwich face Liverpool and Manchester United face West Ham. Leicester will travel to South London and The Den to take on Millwall.
A pick of the ties also includes Rochdale travelling to Burnley in a Lancashire derby and AFC Wimbledon going to Arsenal. Other ties include Fulham hosting Leeds and QPR hosting Everton. All ties will take place the week commencing 20th September.
