With the second round of the Carabao Cup fixtures now complete, we take a look at some of the shock results of the round, and what it means for those teams who have gone through.
Fulham v Spurs
This one may not really be much of a shock, with both Premier League teams battling it out, and with Spurs playing away from home, but the Spurs side who have impressed so much this season have been knocked out in their first game.
Expectations may have been high for them coming into this competition. The two domestic trophies are ones that Spurs should definitely be looking at winning this season with no European football.
They came into the game in good form, having not lost a game in the Premier League, whereas Fulham were inconsistent to say the least.
Craven Cottage is a difficult place to go, especially for the bigger teams. But, a much-changed Spurs team more than matched Fulham.
An unfortunate Van de Ven own goal gave Fulham an early lead, before Richarlison equalised shortly after halftime.
The game dragged on and found itself being decided by a penalty shootout. After a clean set of penalties from Fulham, Davison Sanchez missed for Spurs, resulting in them losing 5-3 on penalties, and getting knocked out in the second round.
Fulham’s reward for beating Spurs is a home game against Championship side Norwich in the third round.
Salford v Leeds
A huge tie took place for the home side, Salford, as the League Two side welcomed Leeds United.
The game took place in front of the cameras, and it was a great game to witness, and the League Two side more than held their own.
Leeds dominated possession, with 71%, and they certainly created chances, with 33 shots and 9 on target.
Salford defended well, and limited Leeds to a lot of long-range shots, which were comfortably dealt with, whilst also looking dangerous on the counterattack.
The breakthrough came, just after the half hour mark, through former Leeds man Matt Smith. A cross from the left-hand side was met by Smith‘s head, as the ball nestled into the bottom right corner, sending the home side into raptures.
Salford held their nerve, and they looked on course for a surprise win, but they were part of their own downfall.
A free kick from the right caused all sorts of problems, resulting in a goalmouth scramble, and Pascal Struijk tucked the loose ball away, making it 1-1.
Leeds dominated from there on out, but could not find a way through as the game went to penalties.
Georginio Rutter missed Leeds’ third penalty, but they stayed in the game after Connor McLennan hit the bar for the hosts. Jamie Shackleton then missed for Leeds, giving Salford the advantage.
Ossama Ashley took his penalty, which was saved by Karl Darlow, but had to be retaken after the keeper came off his line early. Ashley made no mistake the second time round, making it 9-8 to Salford on pens, and sending the League Two side into the third round.
Their reward for a heroic battle against Leeds, is another home tie, this time against Premier League opposition, in the shape of Burnley, where they will be hoping to cause another upset.
Sheffield United v Lincoln
Sheffield United have suffered in the Premier League so far. They have lost their first three games, have had some of their best players cherry picked from their team, and have only just been able to bring some new players in.
Their Carabao Cup second round fixture had the potential to offer them some respite, for them to put on a good performance for their fans, pick up a comfortable win and get some confidence.
Despite coming up against League One opposition, and naming a relatively strong squad, including new signing Cameron Archer, they were unable to find a breakthrough over the course of 90 minutes.
They only managed two shots on target, and whilst they restricted Lincoln to very little, it was the lack of creative output from the home side that was concerning.
The game went to penalties. Louie Marsh and Teddy Bishop both missed penalties for their respective sides, to keep the scores level at 1-1.
Benie Traore missed his for Sheffield United to give Lincoln the advantage, before John Egan missed the decisive spot kick, meaning Lincoln progressed after winning 3-2 on penalties.
Lincoln’s reward is a huge home game in the third round, against the reigning Europa Conference League winners, West Ham.
Other Surprises
There were a lot of other ‘nearly’ shock results, or games where the end result was slightly surprising.
Championship side Sheffield Wednesday being knocked out by League Two side Mansfield Town on penalties was one of those shock results, but may not be entirely surprising considering the early form of Wednesday in the league.
Brentford got taken all the way to penalties in their away game against League Two side Newport County. A new look Brentford side took the lead in the 87th minute through Mathias Jensen, but Kiban Rai equalised in the 6th minute of added time to take the game to penalties.
Brentford made sure they would not fall victim to a giant killing, as they won 3-0 on penalties, ensuring their progression to the next round.
Everton were another Premier League side that were almost a victim of a giant killing. They took on League Two side Doncaster Rovers, and fielded a very strong team.
Despite this, Joe Ironside broke the deadlock for the League Two club minutes before half time. New arrival Beto scored his first goal for Everton, levelling the scores with 17 minutes to go.
It was an even game throughout, but Everton’s superior finishing came through in the end, as Danjuma put The Toffees ahead, with a goal 2 minutes from time.
Chelsea were almost part of the shock result of the round, as they faced League Two side AFC Wimbledon. Chelsea fielded a team with a mixture of experience and youth to face Wimbledon.
James Tilley put the League Two side ahead after just 19 minutes, finding the back of the net from the penalty spot. Noni Madueke made sure Chelsea went in at half time level, as he equalised from the spot.
Chelsea had to rely on their substitutes to help them progress into the third round, as Enzo Fernandez stepped off the bench to score the goal that sent Chelsea through.
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