Eight Teams to Battle It Out in Carabao Cup Quarterfinals

You may be forgiven for thinking that we have forgotten about the Carabao Cup in England. The competition saw the first four rounds take place at the start of the season and then it was on hiatus while the Europa League and Champions League Group Stages were completed. However, just before Christmas, the Quarterfinals of the Carabao Cup will take place this week with four intriguing games to look forward to.

A total of six teams from the Premier League, plus two high-flying Championship teams will battle it out for a place in the quarterfinals of a competition that Manchester City have dominated in recent times, winning in each of the last three seasons and winning five times out of the last seven seasons overall.

If you would like to have a wager on the outcome of any of the four Carabao Cup ties taking place this week across England, then you may well need to sign up with a reliable sports betting service to do that. What you want is a site that not only offers great betting all round, but which also offers a great incentive for you to join and one such promotion that fits the bill perfectly is the latest Bet365 Welcome Bonus for new players.

Bet365 Sport Open Account Offer

Up to £100 in Bet Credits for new customers at bet365.

Min deposit £5. Bet Credits available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply.

Not only do you get access to up to £100 in bet credits once you sign up and start betting on the site but you also gain access to a whole host of other bet365 Sport promotions too. Plus your log in gives you access to all the other sister sites part of the bet365 network including Vegas, Casino, Bingo and Poker.

Alternatively, if you live someplace else in the world where you need an alternative, say in Pennsylvania in the United States, then one option for you there is the latest BetRivers Promo Code offer. This deal will get you signed up with BetRivers Sportsbook and Casino with a very nice bonus offer, allowing you to access all the different attractions within each part of the site.

You can also sign up with BetRivers from Indiana too, only here you need to use a different code. It is the BetRivers Affiliate Code for Indiana which is “HOOSIERBONUS”. Simply type this code into the box when depositing intyo your account for the first time and you will be able to access a bonus specifically for those residing in the Hoosier State.

Finally, one other option is te latest DraftKings Online Sportsbook Welcome Offer, which is available across numerous other states in the United States and which also offers an extensive range of different sports betting options, including a wealth of bets on the Premier League and more.

Let’s now take a look ahead to the quarterfinals in the Carabao Cup coming up this week by previewing the games taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
Carabao Cup Quarterfinals

The quarterfinals are being played two per night across Tuesday and Wednesday evening this week. The first game each night kicks off at 5.30pm with the second starting at 8.00pm GMT. All games are played to a conclusion on the night using extra time and penalties if required to decide the winner.

Tuesday 22^nd December

Brentford v Newcastle United (5.30pm)

Brentford Progress

• 1^st Round – V Wycombe (H) D 1-1 (4-2 pens)
• 2^nd Round – V Southampton (A) – W 2-0
• 3^rd Round – V West Brom (H) – D 2-2 (W 5-4 pens)
• 4^th Round – V Fulham (H) – W 3-0

Newcastle United Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – V Blackburn Rovers (H) – W 1-0
• 3^rd Round – V Fleetwood Town (A) – W 7-0
• 4^th Round – V Newport County (A) – D 1-1 (W 5-4 pens)

For me this is the game that has the most chance of being an upset in the quarterfinals. Newcastle’s form this season has been somewhat erratic and while they smashed seven past Fleetwood, they have struggled to score against Newport and required penalties to get through that game. Brentford have already beaten three Premier League sides this season to reach this stage of the competition one on the road and two at home, so they won’t be fazed at all by facing Newcastle.

This could be a very close one and I would not be surprised if the game requires penalties to decide the winner. If it does go that far, then given Brentford are at home and have twice gone through by penalties in previous rounds, I’d back them as a winner.

However, for the 90 minute score, I think a 1-1 draw is the most likely outcome and that is available at 11/2 with bet365.

Arsenal v Manchester City (8.00pm)

Arsenal Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – Bye
• 3^rd Round – V Leicester (A) W 2-0
• 4^th Round – V Liverpool (A) D 0-0 (W 5-4 pens)

Manchester City Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – Bye
• 3^rd Round – V Bournemouth (H) – W 2-1
• 4^th Round – V Burnley (A) W 3-0

Arsenal have given Manchester City a few problems in recent games between the teams, notably in the FA Cup Semifinal last season where the Gunners were unexpected winners. City though have a phenomenal record in this competition and given the recent form Arsenal have shown, it is hard to make a realistic case for them to win this game.

Of course, in a one-off cup tie, anything can happen but I just feel that the lack of confidence at Arsenal at the minute is really showing in their performances which look nervy, lacking belief and defensively they look very tentative. Even though City are not firing on all cylinders, I still fancy them to land the win here.

I fear that this could be another tough night for Arsenal fans as even when City rotate players to rest some key stars, they have so much quality to bring in as a replacement. As such, I am backing Manchester City to win the game and I think a 3-1 scoreline at 11/1 is a very good option.

Wednesday 23^rd December

Stoke City v Tottenham Hotspurs (5.30pm)

Stoke City Progress

• 1^st Round – V Blackpool (H) D 0-0 (W 5-4 on pens)
• 2^nd Round – V Wolves (A) W 1-0
• 3^rd Round – V Gillingham (H) W 1-0
• 4^th Round – V Aston. Villa (A) W 1-0

Tottenham Hotspur Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – Bye
• 3^rd Round – Bye (Orient unable to fulfil fixture)
• 4^th Round – v Chelsea (A) D 1-1 (W 5-4 on pens)

Stoke City have managed to get this far in the competition by scoring just 3 goals in their four games so far, but they are yet to concede a goal in the tournament (as are Arsenal and Manchester United). Stoke though have played double the amount of games of the two Premier League giants and that deserves special commendation.

However, they face a Tottenham Hotspur side in solid form at the moment and with a new, much more stoic and solid defensive spine thanks to the work Jose Mourinho has done with the team. Add to that the flair of the likes of Son, Bale, Kane and Moura and you have a team that is well set to take on any team.

Spurs do need to win silverware though as although they have been close in recent times, they have always fallen just short. Mourinho is a proven winner though and he knows how valuable winning a trophy like the Carabao Cup can be.

This should be a relatively comfortable night for Spurs and I am backing them to win this game 2-0 at 8/1 with bet365.

Everton v Manchester United (8.00pm)

Everton Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – V Salford City (H) – W 3-0
• 3^rd Round – V Fleetwood Town (A) – W 5-2
• 4^th Round – V West Ham United (H) – W 4-1

Manchester United Progress

• 1^st Round – Bye
• 2^nd Round – Bye
• 3^rd Round – V Luton Town (A) – W 3-0
• 4^th Round – V Brighton (A) – W 3-0

For me, this is the most exciting game in the Quarterfinals this week. Everton are in a great run of form at the moment with wins over Leicester City and Chelsea in their last couple of games (ahead of the weekend). Manchester United though are the in form team in the Premier League at least with five wins in their last six games.

One of those wins came in the league at Goodison Park where United were 3-1 winners and that result will give them huge confidence ahead of this game. However, Everton will be much more confident too after wins over two top four sides in recent times.

That said, Manchester United are perfectly set up to play away from home where their fast attack and counter attacking style is much more conducive to them getting wins and I think that will likely be the deciding factor here.

This will be another close one but I am backing Manchester United to sneak it 2-1 at 8/1 with bet365.

*All odds shown were correct with bet365 Sport as of 12.10pm on Saturday 19^th December 2020.

Tags:  bet365 Carabao Cup

---