Arsenal knocked out of Carabao Cup by League Two Fleetwood
Max DowmanArsenal have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup by fourth-tier Fleetwood Town, who won 5-3 on penalties at Highbury Stadium after a 1-1 draw.
Conor Haughey scored the winning spot-kick, capping a night that also featured a red card for Max Dowman and an eight-minute stoppage caused by a drone.
For the Premier League champions, it is a bruising exit. They began the fourth-round tie as overwhelming favourites and were hoping to improve on last season’s final defeat.
A drone halts the game
Referee Michael Salisbury stopped play after just one minute and 40 seconds, having spotted a drone over the pitch while Arsenal lined up a free-kick.
He consulted the benches and captains while police looked into it. Play restarted with 10 minutes on the clock, and a Sky commentator later said officers had found the operator.
Players kept the ball moving to stay warm while the crowd booed.
The referee had signalled for everyone to head to the touchline, but the drone flew away just as they were about to leave. It later fell on a local housing estate.
Seven minutes were added to the first half to make up for the delay. Commentating on the match for 5 Live, Ian Dennis said:
What a shame this has happened. This is the most high-profile game in the club’s history. In terms of the profile and the revenue, it’s so lucrative.
Dennis was right about the stakes. Fleetwood had never previously got this far in the competition, and they had not let in a goal while beating three opponents to reach this stage.
Loupalo-Bi stuns the champions
Aaron Loupalo-Bi gave Fleetwood the lead before the break, firing low past debutant goalkeeper Illan Meslier. The Independent pointed out that the League Two side sit 18th in their division, 84 places beneath Arsenal in the pyramid.
Mikel Arteta had made sweeping changes, with Dowman starting and Meslier making his competitive debut. The Evening Standard noted that the manager’s attention seemed partly on Sunday’s league meeting with Liverpool.
Arsenal arrived after beating Everton at the weekend, which stretched their unbeaten run to five games in all competitions.
Arteta sent on captain Martin Odegaard at half-time, and Viktor Gyokeres equalised soon after. That, however, was as good as it got for the visitors.
Fleetwood then withstood sustained pressure, with goalkeeper Jay Lynch making a fine save to keep the scores level. Dowman, 16, was also sent off for kicking out at an opponent.
Haughey holds his nerve
Fleetwood took first turn in the shootout, and Coughlan scored. Odegaard replied for Arsenal, and Neal then thumped his penalty past Meslier.
Kai Havertz, who had missed chances during the game, found the corner, as did Davies. Gyokeres then scored for Arsenal and Andy Cannon for Fleetwood.
That left Bruno Guimaraes needing to score to keep Arsenal alive. He missed, and Haughey kept his composure to finish the job.
Questions for Arteta
It is fair to argue that Arteta’s rotation, with one eye on Liverpool, cost his side its place in the competition.
Equally, Fleetwood deserve credit for keeping their composure when it mattered most.
Arsenal now turn their attention to Sunday’s Premier League game against Liverpool.
