A fourth-tier side just knocked Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup
Fleetwood Town, 18th in League Two, drew 1-1 with Arsenal at Highbury Stadium and won the shoot-out 5-3. Loupalo-Bi scored, Gyökeres equalised, Dowman was sent off and goalkeeper Jay Lynch saved Bruno Guimarães's penalty.
Fleetwood Town, 18th in League Two, have knocked Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup. The fourth-round tie at the little Highbury Stadium on the Lancashire coast finished 1-1 on Tuesday night, and Fleetwood won the shoot-out 5-3.
It takes the Cods into the League Cup quarter-finals for the first time in the club’s history.
The night, in order
It started oddly. A drone hovering over the ground stopped play and both teams were taken off. Once they came back, Fleetwood grew into it, and in the 21st minute Aaron Loupalo-Bi, on loan from Fulham, outpaced Marli Salmon down the left and beat Illan Meslier.
Arsenal levelled five minutes after the break when Viktor Gyökeres turned in Ceadach O’Neill’s cross. After that the evening belonged to Jay Lynch. The Fleetwood keeper made a double save from Max Dowman and Kai Havertz, then kept out Ben White from close range late on.
Dowman was sent off with about five minutes left after a clash with Harrison Neal, and Mikel Arteta appeared to have words with him as he went.
Five out of five
Ronan Coughlan, Neal, Will Davies and Andy Cannon all scored for Fleetwood. Lynch then saved Arsenal’s fourth kick, from Bruno Guimarães, and teenage defender Conor Haughey stepped up to make it 5-3. The pitch invasion was immediate.
Arsenal were without Declan Rice, Gabriel and David Raya, and Martin Ødegaard only came on at half-time. Arteta called it a sad day and said his side had not taken their chances. It is the second season running that Arsenal have gone out of this competition to a fourth-tier club.
Another twist in a season of change at the Emirates, after a summer in which Arsenal sold Martinelli to Al Hilal. The club’s official match report has the full line-up and every penalty taker.
By Vasco Almada
Image: Steve Daniels / geograph.org.uk, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)