League Two Fleetwood knock Arsenal out of Carabao Cup on penalties

Fleetwood Town, who play in League Two, English football's fourth tier, knocked Premier League champions Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup on 27 October 2026. The fourth-round tie at Highbury Stadium finished 1-1 after 90 minutes, and Fleetwood won the shootout 5-3 to reach the quarter-finals. Arsenal's official website confirmed the exit.

Fleetwood sit 18th in League Two with only 3 wins from 13 matches. Arsenal are second in the Premier League with 7 wins from 8 games. With three divisions between the clubs, the result is one of the biggest upsets of this season's League Cup.

What happened in Fleetwood vs Arsenal?

The match was stopped after 93 seconds, when referee Michael Salisbury halted play because a drone was flying over the ground. Arsenal.com said the delay lasted close to eight minutes, and Sporx reported that play resumed after 8 minutes. Fleetwood scored first. Harrison Neal played a pass through midfield to Aaron Loupalo-Bi, who beat Illan Meslier between the legs. The Guardian has the goal on 20 minutes, while Arsenal.com and Sporx put it at 21.

Arsenal equalised early in the second half. Debutant Ceadach O'Neill sent a ball into the box, and Viktor Gyökeres touched it past Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch (49 minutes according to The Guardian, 50 according to Sporx). At half-time, Mikel Arteta had replaced Jurrien Timber and Marli Salmon with Martin Ødegaard and Ben White. Lynch was one of the stars of the night, saving from Kai Havertz and keeping out a Ben White effort on the line.

Why was Max Dowman sent off?

Arsenal teenager Max Dowman was shown a straight red card late in the game, which left Arsenal with 10 men. Sporx reported that the card came in the 85th minute. According to Arsenal.com, a heavy challenge by Neal started a scuffle, Dowman reacted, and Salisbury sent him off once things had calmed down. Sky Sports reported that pundit Paul Merson criticised how Arteta reacted to the sending-off.

Who scored and missed in the penalty shootout?

Fleetwood scored all five of their penalties, while Arsenal's shootout fell apart on their fourth kick. According to the order given by Arsenal.com, Ødegaard, Havertz and Gyökeres all scored for Arsenal, but Lynch saved from Bruno Guimarães. Neal, Ronan Coughlan, Will Davies and Andy Cannon scored for Fleetwood before Conor Haughey converted the winning penalty.

• Fleetwood Town: Neal (scored), Coughlan (scored), Will Davies (scored), Andy Cannon (scored), Conor Haughey (scored)
• Arsenal: Ødegaard (scored), Havertz (scored), Gyökeres (scored), Bruno Guimarães (saved by Lynch)

What comes next?

Sporx reported that the quarter-final draw will take place after Liverpool play Chelsea on 28 October 2026, with the ties to be played in the week of 14-20 December. Fleetwood Town host Bristol Rovers in League Two on 31 October 2026. Arsenal visit Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League on 1 November 2026 and then travel to Slavia Prague in the Champions League. Arsenal are seventh in the Champions League league phase with 7 points from 3 games (ScoreLab data).