The second round of the Carabao Cup saw things mixed up a little with the introduction of the majority of the Premier League sides. Not all of them had it their own way though, with four top-flight outfits already out of the competition. The second edition of Carabao Cup Round-Up takes a closer look at some of the key games from Round Two, including the mayhem at Forest and Macclesfield continuing their shoot-out streak.
Carabao Cup Round-Up – Second Round
Stoppage Time Mayhem at Forest
Nottingham Forest’s fixture against Newcastle seemed to be petering out into a scraped victory for the hosts, who had gained the lead through former Magpies striker Daryl Murphy.
However, the game exploded into life in the first minute of stoppage time. Ayoze Perez’s pass was perfectly timed for Salomon Rondon to take it in his stride and smash the ball beyond Luke Steele in the Forest goal.
You might have thought that both sides would settle for a penalty shoot-out by this point, but Forest were keen to make full use of the six additional minutes. Karl Darlow could only parry a cross straight into the path of Matty Cash, who slid and fired in to send the City Ground into raptures in the 94th minute.
Newcastle were then left furious as the referee waved away claims for a penalty when Perez was clattered by Steele. However, their frustration would grow further no more than two minutes later when Gil Dias robbed Kenedy of possession on the edge of the Newcastle area and chipped the ball over Darlow to seal the game and a passage into round three for the Championship side.
2017 Runners-Up Through to Round Three
Charlie Austin’s late header ensured that last season’s runners-up, Southampton, still had a chance of repeating the feat, for another round at least. The Saints made the short trip to Premier League rivals Brighton & Hove Albion and were left frustrated for the majority of the game.
Mark Hughes’ side were on top for the entire match, bettering Brighton’s possession by 6% and having five more shots on target than the hosts – they just couldn’t find a way through.
Brighton will have taken confidence from only conceding once at Anfield last weekend against Liverpool, so it’s hardly surprising that they were so resolute against a side expected to be far less of an attacking problem than Jurgen Klopp’s side.
The Seagulls held out as long as they could, though, and were beaten in the 88th minute when Austin met Nathan Redmond’s cross perfectly to head in, despite the best efforts of David Button in the Brighton goal.
Macclesfield Continue Their Shoot-Out Streak
While this game will be remembered for League Two side Macclesfield making the third round of the Carabao Cup, it should also be noted that this is now the eight wins from eight penalty shoot-outs for the Silkmen.
The 90 minutes prior to the shoot-out against Walsall weren’t bad either. In fact, Macclesfield had taken a 2-0 lead on their visit to the Saddlers by the 25th minute through Jamie Grimes and Harry Smith.
The hosts made their League One status known, though, and were on level terms just after the hour mark. Kieron Morris had equalised before half-time and Andy Cook drew them level. Within a minute of Cook’s equaliser, Josh Gordon had them in front after being down by two to their League Two opponents.
Macclesfield didn’t give up, though, and levelled in stoppage time when Tyrone Marsh’s cross evaded everybody, including Walsall keeper Chris Dunn, and nestled in the net.
Macclesfield’s Kieran O’Hara was the shoot-out hero, denying Walsall three times as the visitors won 3-1 on spot-kicks to seal their passage to Round Three.
Elsewhere in…
The Northern Section
Blackburn Rovers eventually overcame a stubborn Lincoln City side to record a 4-1 victory thanks to goals from Joe Nuttal, Danny Graham, Paul Downing and Kasey Palmer.
Leicester City welcomed Jamie Vardy’s old side, Fleetwood, to the King Power. Unfortunately, the man himself was suspended for the clash in which the visitors lost 4-0, with the pick of the goals coming from Christian Fuchs.
Derby County were the other side to score four times as they continued their good form under Frank Lampard, beating Championship counterparts Hull away from home.
Blackpool came from behind to beat Doncaster Rovers, Leeds United lost for the first time this season as they went down at home to Preston and Middlesbrough scraped past League One outfit Rochdale.
Two second-half goals gave Premier League newcomers Wolves the win at Sheffield Wednesday while Stoke were also 2-0 victors, beating Huddersfield Town at the bet365 Stadium.
West Brom survived a scare against Mansfield Town as they ran out 2-1 winners and finally, on Wednesday, Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s brace helped Everton to a 3-1 win over Rotherham United.
The Southern Section
West Ham United left it late to secure a comeback against AFC Wimbledon, who had taken an early lead through Joe Pigott. Second-half goals from Issa Diop, Angelo Ogbonna and Javier Hernandez gave the Hammers their first win of the season.
Bournemouth made much lighter work of their tie as they eased to a 3-0 win over MK Dons. Lys Mousset, Ryan Fraser and Jordon Ibe got on the scoresheet for the Cherries.
Alexander Sortloth’s first goal for Crystal Palace was enough for them to beat Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium, while Norwich City’s cross-country trip to Cardiff was worth every minute after they ran out 3-1 winners in South Wales.
Fulham claimed a 2-0 win over League Two side Exeter City, Oxford United’s resurgence continued with a 3-0 win at Newport and it was the same story for QPR as they played Bristol Rovers, who did at least grab a consolation through Ed Upson.
Wycombe Wanderers advanced on penalties after a 2-2 draw with Forest Green, Brentford narrowly beat Cheltenham Town and finally, on Wednesday, Millwall left it late to beat Plymouth 3-2 and Watford eased to a 2-0 win at Reading.
Stats You May Have Missed
- In the last three League Cup meetings between Nottingham Forest and Newcastle, 16 goals have been scored.
- Joe Pigott’s four goals in seven games for AFC Wimbledon is as many as his final 17 games combined of the 2017/18 season.
- As Manchester City manager, Manuel Pellegrini won his four League Cup games against non-Premier League opposition 19-2 on aggregate.
- QPR have scored more goals in two Carabao Cup games (four) than in five Championship games (three) this season.
- Saido Berahino’s goal for Stoke against Huddersfield ended a drought of 913 days without a goal, stretching back to February 2016.
All stats from Opta
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