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