Manchester City in Trouble and Out of the League Cup
Tottenham Hotspur eliminated Manchester City from the EFL Cup with a 2-1 victory, handing City their first loss of the season across all competitions.
German striker Timo Werner (5) and Senegalese player Papa Sarr (25) scored for Tottenham, while Portuguese player Matheus Nunes (45+4) netted the only goal for City, who had not lost a match since losing to Manchester United 2-1 in the FA Cup final on April 25.
Despite the EFL Cup’s limited significance—one that City does not prioritize—Spanish coach Pep Guardiola took the time to analyze the reasons behind the defeat.
It is well-known that the English champions have been overwhelmed by injuries, with Savinho and Manuel Akanji joining the growing list of sidelined players after the loss to Tottenham. The Brazilian winger was stretchered off in the 62nd minute due to an ankle injury, while the Swiss defender did not start the match due to a muscle issue he encountered during warm-ups.
City is already missing key players, including Belgian Kevin De Bruyne, Spanish Rodri, Kyle Walker, Norwegian Oscar Bob, fellow Belgian Jeremy Doku, and Jack Grealish.
Guardiola stated after the match: “Now we have 13 available players, so we are in a very difficult situation. The players who will participate will end up struggling with issues, and we’ll see how they recover.”
He added: “I think we are in trouble because, in nine years, we have not faced a situation with this number of injuries. I hope Savinho is not in serious danger, but we will see. Akanji felt something in his muscles during the last movement, and yesterday during warm-up, he didn’t feel well.”
He commented: “The players who played in the match were also dealing with some problems; for example, Ruben Dias sometimes has issues as well. We’ll monitor their recovery process closely.”
He concluded: “It gets harder match by match. Perhaps we will all gather again someday. The players who are here are fighting to stay and pushing themselves, focusing for us; I will not forget these players.”
It’s worth noting that City, who lead the Premier League table by just one point over Liverpool, will visit Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.
Liverpool and United Advance, Chelsea Exits
In other results, Liverpool, the defending champions, advanced to the quarter-finals by defeating Brighton 3-2, ahead of their league match on Saturday.
Dutchman Cody Gakpo scored for Liverpool (46 and 63), along with Colombian Luis Díaz (85), while Ivorian Simon Adingra (81) and Ghanaian Tariq Lamptey (90) netted for Brighton.
In his first match in charge, interim coach Dutchman Ruud van Nistelrooy, who replaced the sacked Erik ten Hag, witnessed Manchester United triumph over Leicester City 5-2 at Old Trafford.
Brazilian Casemiro (15 and 39), Argentine Alejandro Garnacho (28), and Portuguese Bruno Fernandes (36 and 59) contributed to United’s goals, while Moroccan Bilal El Khannous (33) and Conor Coady (45+3) found the net for Leicester.
Newcastle also defeated Chelsea 2-1, with goals from Swedish Alexander Isak and Frenchman Axel Disasi.
Chelsea’s loss comes ahead of their match with United on Sunday in the tenth round of the league, while Newcastle will face Arsenal, who had no trouble overcoming Preston from the Championship with a 3-1 victory, thanks to goals from Brazilian Gabriel Jesus (24), Ethan Nwaneri (33), and German Kai Havertz (57).
Crystal Palace eliminated host Aston Villa with a 2-1 win, featuring goals from Eberechi Eze (8) and Japanese substitute Daichi Kamada (64), while Colombian John Duran scored for Aston Villa (23).
Brentford triumphed over Sheffield Wednesday on penalties after a 1-1 draw, while Southampton defeated Stoke City 3-2.
