Preview: League Cup Semi-Finals Return Legs
Both Arsenal and Man City won their away matches in the 1st leg of the League Cup semi-finals, and are heavy favourites to go to the final ahead of this week’s return fixtures! Are we in for any upsets in the 2nd leg matches?
Arsenal are leading the title race in the league, and could also book themselves a place in the League Cup final tomorrow, especially after having secured a strong 3-2 win away at Chelsea in the 1st leg. White, Gyökeres and Zubimendi scored the goals for the Gunners in the first match, with Garnacho bagging a brace for the hosts. Man City also won their away fixture in the 1st leg, 2-0 away at Newcastle, with Semenyo and Cherki scoring the goals.
Let’s take a closer look at the return legs in the League Cup semi-finals, with Arsenal hosting Chelsea on Tuesday before Newcastle travel to Man City on Wednesday.
Arsenal vs Chelsea
Emirates, Tuesday @ 21:00
The first of the semi-final 2nd leg matches is a London derby between Arsenal and Chelsea, with the hosts clear odds favourites at 1.68. Having won 3-2 away in the first leg, Arteta’s team are favourites to go through, especially after their impressive 4-0 win away at Leeds this weekend.
Chelsea are a team in form, however, so Arteta might be careful here, not risking too much squad rotation despite having a potentially difficult match against Sunderland coming up this weekend.
Looking closer at Arsenal, Saka is doubtful, so Madueke could get the nod from start on the right wing, with Gyökeres and Gabriel Jesus both hoping to start up front. Kepa Arrizabalaga could start against his former club, with Timber, Saliba, Gabriel and Hincapie a likely defensive line-up. Rice, Zubimendi and the Arsenal captain will likely start in midfield, with Martinelli a likely starter on the left wing.
Arsenal struggled a bit with form in January, losing at home to Man Utd, while drawing against Nottingham Forest away and Liverpool at home. Their recent 3-1 win at Inter was impressive, though, and their win this weekend at Leeds means they’re in good form ahead of this fixture.
Arsenal to score over 1.5 goals is at 1.66, with over 2.5 goals for the home side is at 3.10.
Chelsea have shown positive signs after Rosenior took over as manager, winning 6 out of 7 matches, including a very strong 3-2 win away at Napoli that secured them a top 8 finish and knocking the Italian giants out in the process. Chelsea’s only loss after Rosenior’s arrival was in the 1st leg of this semi-final, losing 2-3 at home against Arsenal. Following that match, Chelsea have won 5 matches in a row.
Cucurella and Joao Pedro were amongst the players starting on the bench in their last match, but they’re both likely to be back in the starting eleven ahead of this crucial fixture. James, Chalobah, Fofana and Cucurella should then form the defensive line-up ahead of Sanchez, with Caicedo and Enzo controlling the midfield. Neto, Palmer and Pedro are likely to start behind Delap, unless Estêvão gets the nod.
Chelsea to score over 1.5 goals in tomorrow’s match is at 3.25, with over 2.5 goals at 8.50.
Man City vs Newcastle
Etihad, Wednesday @ 21:00
Moving on to Manchester, Guardiola’s Man City are clear odds favourites ahead of their return leg against Newcastle, despite their disappointing 2-2 draw against Spurs in the weekend. The Blues won 2-0 away at Newcastle in the 1st leg, and are unlikely to let their lead slip, though that could also have been said about their 2-0 lead against Spurs in their last match.
Doku is a recent addition to the injury list, with Gvardiol, Dias, Stones, Savinho and Kovacic already out of action. James Trafford could get the nod ahead of Donnarumma in this one, with recent arrival Guehi also expected to start.
The hosts are odds favourites at 1.82 in this match, and they’re expected to go through to the final, where Arsenal seems like the most likely opposition.
Newcastle are also struggling with a few key injuries, with Schar, Livramento and Krafth amongst the players looking to miss this match. Bruno Guimaraes is also a doubt, and having to face Man City without their skipper would be a major blow.
The visitors have been struggling lately, losing 1-4 against Liverpool in the weekend, and their odds of 13.00 to qualify shows just how unlikely it is that they will progress to the cup final. Can they pull out something extraordinary in Manchester Wednesday evening?
Don’t forget that we have Early Payout on this one – read more about it here.
Please note that the odds might have changed since the writing and/or publication of this article.
Last updated: 02.02.26
