The Carabao League Cup draw has taken place for the third round of the competition, and Arsenal have been drawn at home to play against Doncaster Rovers.
We beat the League One side in the competition back in 2005, but did not have it all plain sailing as we needed a penalty shoot-out in order to advance to the next round.
Arsenal actually looked on course for a shocking loss, having trailed from the fourth minute of the game, but did level terms inside the second-half with plenty of time to find the winner. That winner didn’t come in normal time however, and we trailed once again in extra-time. Had it not been for a Gilberto Silva equaliser at the death of the 120 minutes, we would have been a laughing stock and eliminated.
This time around we have been drawn at home, and appear to take the competition a little more serious in recent years, although you would still expect to see a number of inexperienced players fielded. You would hope that our ranks had enough to see off the lower league side, but we cannot take them for granted like last time and expect to get away with it twice.
Draw in full:
Chelsea v Nottingham Forest
West Ham v Bolton
Crystal Palace v Huddersfield
Tottenham v Barnsley or Derby
Bournemouth v Brighton
Burnley v Leeds United
Arsenal v Doncaster Rovers
Bristol City v Stoke
Reading v Swansea
Aston Villa v Middlesbrough
West Brom v Manchester City
Everton v Sunderland
Leicester v Liverpool
Manchester United v Burton Albion
Brentford v Norwich
Wolves v Bristol Rovers
How seriously do we need to take Doncaster Rovers? Will Arsene Wenger have a real go at winning this season’s competition?
Pat J
TBH I don’t even remember who won this rather meaningless cup last year. For me, there is too much football as it is. Soon we will have an other international break for the WC and the PL season has hardly started. Sanchez seems to play in some sort of tournament every year, then we have the ACN the Euros and WC alternating every two years. Then we have the FA cup and PL and the Europa League and CL, do we really need this league cup?
Some times less is more.
United
Mourinho and Ibrahimovich were ecstatic. They were so happy when they won. It wasn’t meaningless to them. Neither was the Europa League win. They have a winning mentality. They want to win trophies. They aren’t picky about which trophies are better. They want to win every competition they enter
I’m not picky or snobbish about trophies
If we win the League Cup, I will be very happy
Hey, when you don’t win the big ones you might as well scramble for the little ones. I am sure it is all a matter of personal taste. But don’t be fooled by United. As soon as they win a big trophy again (for me big is only the PL or the CL) they will troll us for being happy with a league cup trophy.
Sadly for me, I am picky and snobbish about trophies and I still believe in my hearts of hearts that a club like Arsenal should not rest or be satisfied until it wins a PL or CL. Nothing else suffices.
It’s good and well saying that, but in reality, you have different rules for them and us.
They are winners for winning a cup no one takes seriously and having the easiest run ever in Europa League, but I guarantee no one thinks we have a winning mentality despite winning 3/4 FA cups.
True that. Winning mentality is more about how you act than what you win. No one doubts the desire of Abramovich or Mourinho to win at all cost and their actions support that.
Kroenke has publically stated he is not in Sports to win and Wenger’s behavior shows he doesn’t care as much about winning as he does about book keeping. If Wenger had the drive to win of a Mourinho or a Pep he would have walked 10 years ago when he saw there was no ambition of the owner matching his own. He could have gone to Real or probably most clubs in Europe at the time.
In stead, he preferred his pressure free job at Arsenal with no sight of winning the PL or CL but with a big salary. You can’t blame the guy because he gets away with it. But you can’t claim that winning is as important to him as it to Mourinho or Pep or Conte. Our club lacks a winners mentality and it is spreading amongst the fans who would settle for a league cup because that is the best we can do.
Never settle for anything less than your dreams because you will get what you settle for.
Sell Oxlade, upon all the skills he has I think 125k per week he’s been offered is fair and if he doesn’t commit I will be angry if he isn’t sold at least to cut the loss on Sanchez if he is gonna be made to stay. He should be begging to stay at Arsenal and I laugh when I hear he wants to play CM at Chelsea.
This Liverpool game is coming at a really bad time. Wenger done us no favors by dikking around with our defence before we could get some rhythm going. I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but I hope Wenger plays more than one CB. At the best of times, us going up there to play you have a go we have a go, is madness. I have no confidence on us getting a win, a draw I could maybe see but never a win. I pray I’m wrong (fos) or partly right depending. I’m beginning to think that with all our players running out of contract, that this is Arsene being desperate so to force players into performing better. If true it shows us that Wenger should not be leading these boys. And now I’m starting to go further, into paranoia, that he effed around with defence a second time to give our players an early wake up call so to go away and get confidence from an Anfield win. Might be stretching it though, but, I’m out of ideas and I cannot understand what I have just watched.
Honestly admin, I don’t want to talk about this cup. It might be due to lower expectations these days, or it might from watching Liverpool destroy Hoffenheim, and Liv having the look that they did take our mantle from us ..no matter how unappreciative we felt about being called top four.
Sorry, didn’t mean to reply.
Here is the issue. Remember how our team shoved nistelrooy and give him shit for missing the penalty? where is that attitude where are those men? If someone did that right now wenger would destroy them. We need men. We have fighters like alexis. He needs the armband. Say what you want about wilshere but he’s the type of player arsenal need, temperament wise. If i was manager of arsenal first thing I would do is make steve would take care of defending (if you remember he did and arsenal improved so much but he got credit and then rumours about wenger stopping him from coaching popped up and he became a quiet yes man and our defence fell apart as usual, I’m sure you guys remember this) The next thing I would do is make alexis captain and promise him ambition. I would try to lure wanyamma from tottenham because he’s the type of guy who you can’t fuck with. He may be weak footballing wise but he’s the destroyer and the personality we need. I would then sign van dijk and cap the window.
Cech
kos van dijk mustafi
Bellerin/chamberlain xhaka wanyamma kolasinac
ozil
lacazette alexis
Alternatively
Bellerin van dijk koe kolasinac
xhaka wanyamma
Chamberlain ozil alexis
lacazette
This gives ozil free license to roam and do as he pleases and just never defend. You can’t change the guy he’s brilliant with the ball just let him play. This is because xhaka and wanyamma would just sit and not venture too ar forward giving ozil the protection that he needs. xhaka is perfect fit as he can pass long short he’s physical and can take a shot.
Our problem with the formation now is, the position of Mesut Ozil. Place this magician in the middle of tireless and jet fighter strikers. Check this out:
Laca
Alexis Welbeck
Ozil
or
Giroud
Alexis Laca
Ozil
These two deadly move can kill every team in the epl. With this done , arsenal need another TANK to partner Xhaka. We done fellow !
I like where your head is at in terms of Wanyama. We so should have bought him.
I am quite sure though that Wenger promised ambition to Sanchez. In fact, Wenger promised ambition to anyone who wants to hear it but he doesn’t back it up with action.
Wenger and Trump have a lot in common. They both contradict themselves all the time. In one interview Wenger says the goal is to win the PL and he has the squad to do it. In the next interview, he says the target for the team is 85 points. 85 points don’t win the PL in all cases so which one is the goal? To win the PL or to get to 85 points?
Facing too many low level and physical football teams has been ruining English teams’ achievements in international and European levels. They learn very little from the low level competitions, as opposed to facing top European teams in high level leagues.
Arsenal should use these competitions as platforms to give their youngsters real match experience. But it would be better if they also give the youngsters chances to play in Premier League and UEFA leagues.
We won’t win this because Wenger never takes it seriously. As always, the FA Cup is our only hope this season.
To me, 4th place is a bigger achievement and more important to the club than the League cup or the FA cup. I would not be satisfied with a repeat of last season where we fail to qualify for the CL but win the FA Cup.
This should be Wilshere’s first competitive game.
Arsenal should go all out for any trophy including League cup. This cup game will be the best platform my little Jack, Wenger should allow Wilshire captain each league cup game. We’ve invested in this lad and we gotta push him high no matter what. Assigning the league cup to specific players like Jack, Nelson, Iwobi, Holding, Elneny etc is practically perfecto. I am addicted to Top 4 for some reason and I’m really finding it hard to argue with football fans as a Gunner. Every cup is highly important, let’s go for it. Now it looks like Wenger won’t sign any ” classic player” by the end of the window. We will have 1 or 2 but they will be team players. It’s hard to be a gunner in 2017.
Another competition Arsene treats as a joke. We all go into seasons knowing FA Cup is the best we can do.
EFL cup is fine for keeping squad players who’ve been sitting some minutes to keep them fresh and for giving promising youngsters opportunities to play for the big club. I would be disappointed with us bombing out early because I like to watch those players when they get those chances and also for general embarrassment if it’s a lower division team, but I certainly wouldn’t consider it a tragedy. I want us to be fighting for Premier League best outcome possible and going deep in Champions League (will really miss not being in that this year) and FA Cup. Without ECL, let’s do what’s necessary to get through the group stage of Europa while still using rotation and giving some up and coming players more time, then start taking it dead serious past then. There are some really quality teams in Europa already this year (though we’re unlikely to see them in group stage) and the third place ECL teams are likely to include some real quality also. After that, yeah, I think EFL cup is last on the priority list.