Arsenal are hunting a place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals as they take on Championship side Preston in the fourth round on Wednesday.
The Gunners made light work of third-tier Bolton to open their account in the competition and they’ve been blessed with another kind draw here while Tottenham Hotspur do battle with Manchester City and Chelsea face Newcastle United.
Arsenal were left frustrated with a point against Liverpool at the weekend but have lost just once all season and their performance on Sunday, particularly in the first half, should leave supporters optimistic over their hopes for 2024/25.
Preston, meanwhile, let a 3-0 lead slip at Plymouth on Saturday but are five games unbeaten under Paul Heckingbottom, who was appointed back in August, following a difficult start to the new season.
The Championship side upset Fulham in the third round to set up this fixture, with Wednesday’s hosts downing the Cottagers following a marathon penalty shootout which ended 16-15 in their favour.
Here is 90min’s guide Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie.
Preston vs Arsenal H2H Results (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Preston |
Arsenal |
|---|---|
|
Plymouth 3-3 Preston – 26/10/24 |
Arsenal 2-2 Liverpool – 27/10/24 |
|
Preston 2-2 Norwich – 22/10/24 |
Arsenal 1-0 Shakhtar Donetsk – 22/10/24 |
|
Preston 1-0 Coventry – 19/10/24 |
Bournemouth 2-0 Arsenal – 19/10/24 |
|
Burnley 0-0 Preston – 05/10/24 |
Arsenal 3-1 Southampton – 05/10/24 |
|
Preston 3-0 Watford – 02/10/24 |
Arsenal 2-0 PSG – 01/10/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
Sky Sports+ |
|
United States |
Paramount+, CBS Sports Network |
|
Canada |
DAZN |
Forward Milutin Osmajic continues to serve the eight-match ban he received from the FA for biting Blackburn’s Owen Beck back in September.
Preston may also be without former Premier League midfielder Robbie Brady after he twisted his ankle in Saturday’s draw with Plymouth. Brady could join Ched Evans, Patrick Bauer and Will Keane on the sidelines for Wednesday’s cup tie.
Preston predicted lineup vs Arsenal (4-3-3): Woodman; Kesler-Hayden, Hughes, Lindsay, Storey, Potts; Whiteman, Frokjaer-Jensen, Ledson; Greenwood, Riis.
Jurrien Timber and Gabriel were both forced off against Liverpool, but the pair have avoided major injuries. Still, neither player is expected to feature on Wednesday night.
Martin Odegaard is edging closer to a return and will step up his recovery from an ankle injury this week, but he remains sidelined along with Takehiro Tomiyasu, Kieran Tierney and Riccardo Calafiori.
There should be starts for Hale End phenoms Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly in midfield, while Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling are aiming to impress up top.
Arsenal predicted lineup vs Preston (4-3-3): Raya; Nichols, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko; Jorginho, Lewis-Skelly, Nwaneri; Sterling, Jesus, Trossard.
There’s always scope for a rotated Premier League XI to get caught out in fixtures like this, with Preston downing Fulham on penalties to advance into the fourth round.
While the visitors are unlikely to assert all-out control and wipe the floor with their inferior visitors given the XI Arteta will put out, an Arsenal team inspired by talented youthful exuberance is still expected to get the job done at Deepdale.
It might not be pretty, but the Gunners will progress.
