Carabao Cup second-round draw details
The draw for the Carabao Cup second round has been completed, setting up several fixtures across both northern and southern sections. Among the notable matchups, Chelsea will host League One Luton at Stamford Bridge, while Tottenham is set to welcome Championship side Charlton. Four-time winners Nottingham Forest will face Leeds in the only all-Premier League tie of this round. Newcastle is scheduled to play against second-tier West Bromwich Albion, and Fulham will compete against AFC Wimbledon at Craven Cottage.
Brentford faces an away trip to Birmingham City, and Ipswich will play League One Leicester. In the southern section, West Ham, who secured a victory against Portsmouth in the first round, will travel to fellow Championship side Southampton. All second-round matches are expected to take place in the midweek of the week commencing Monday, 24 August. The nine English clubs participating in European competitions this season are scheduled to enter the Carabao Cup in the third round.
Other fixtures in the northern section include Stoke against Hull, Blackburn versus Sheffield United, Fleetwood playing Shrewsbury, and Bradford hosting Burnley. Sheffield Wednesday will face Wolves, with the match set to occur at Hillsborough. Blackpool is drawn against Lincoln, Preston will play Everton, Barnsley against Crewe, and Doncaster against Middlesbrough.
In the southern section, additional matches include Stevenage versus Reading, Cardiff against Norwich, Walsall playing Leyton Orient, Cambridge against Millwall, and Watford hosting Peterborough. The winner of the Plymouth/Exeter tie will play Coventry.
Fixture congestion for London clubs
A scheduling conflict has emerged involving Fulham and Chelsea due to a Premier League broadcast selection. The Premier League match between Fulham and Chelsea is scheduled for live broadcast on Monday, 24 August. As neither team is involved in European competitions, they both enter the Carabao Cup in the second round, potentially leading to two matches in the same midweek.
Typically, EFL Cup ties would be moved to the Thursday to allow for 72 hours of rest, which could then impact the Premier League’s weekend schedule. Fulham’s match at Sunderland was subsequently moved to the Sunday, and Sky selected Chelsea versus Brighton for broadcast on the Sunday. However, both Fulham and Chelsea were drawn to play at home in the Carabao Cup, and regulations generally prevent them from playing at home on the same day. This situation may require intervention from the police or the EFL to resolve.
The scheduling issues could also affect eight EFL clubs at short notice. The opponents for Fulham and Chelsea, Wimbledon and Luton respectively, have League One fixtures scheduled for the Saturday following their potential Carabao Cup ties. If the Carabao Cup matches are moved to Thursday, these Saturday League One games would typically shift to Sunday. Furthermore, a full programme of League One games is scheduled for the following Tuesday, potentially impacting another four matches that might need to be moved to Wednesday. This could result in teams playing two games within 48 hours or supporters facing disrupted travel plans for displaced games. The matches potentially impacted on Saturday, 29 August include Wimbledon versus Wigan and Mansfield versus Luton. On Tuesday, 1 September, potential impacts could affect Burton versus Wimbledon, Wigan versus MK Dons, Luton versus Stockport, and Reading versus Mansfield.
Wolves to travel to Sheffield Wednesday
Wolves are set to travel to Sheffield Wednesday for their Carabao Cup second-round fixture. The match will take place at Hillsborough during the week commencing 24th August. Wolves secured their spot in the second round following a victory over Port Vale, while Sheffield Wednesday advanced after beating Bolton Wanderers by a score of 1-0.
The last encounter between these two clubs in the same competition was in August 2018, when Wolves defeated Sheffield Wednesday, also in the second round. Details regarding the exact date and ticket information for the upcoming cup tie are expected to be confirmed in due course.
Source: bbc.co.uk
Freya Donnelly is the Sports Reporter at News-UK, covering tennis, cricket and athletics with seven years of reporting experience. She reported on Team GB through an Olympic cycle. She holds a degree in Sport and Media from the University of Brighton and completed an NCTJ diploma. Based in Brighton, she plays club cricket in the summer. “Listening is the most underrated skill in sports reporting.”
