Newcastle send Man City packing in League Cup; Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea advance

Newcastle United's Swedish striker Alexander Isak scores the opening goal past Manchester City's English defender Rico Lewis during the English League Cup third round match between Newcastle United and Manchester City at St James' Park on Wednesday. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 28 September 2023
Follow

Newcastle send Man City packing in League Cup; Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea advance

  • Newcastle’s reward in the fourth-round draw made 30 minutes after the final whistle is a trip to Manchester in the fourth round to face United
  • Liverpool are making a habit of conceding the first goal in games but are still unbeaten this season after beating Leicester 3-1

LONDON: Manchester City seem to win every competition they enter these days except the English League Cup.

Newcastle beat Man City 1-0 on Wednesday in the third round of the League Cup who also eluded Pep Guardiola’s team during their storied treble last season. Guardiola’s agitation showed by getting a yellow card in the closing minutes for dissent to the match officials.

“No problem, I accept everything,” Guardiola told the BBC of his booking. “Congratulations to Newcastle for the victory.”

Newcastle’s reward in the fourth-round draw made 30 minutes after the final whistle is a trip to Manchester in the fourth round to face United. It’s a rematch of last season’s final won by Man United.

Guardiola left star starters Erling Haaland, Kyle Walker and Phil Foden on the bench, yet Man City still dominated the first half without making their possession count with a goal.

Alexander Isak struck in the 53rd for Newcastle who also made sweeping lineup changes to rest key players for another midweek fixture sandwiched between two Champions League challenges.

The goal was created by Joelinton’s dribble into and across the penalty area past four City defenders before squaring a pass that found Isak alone at the far post.

Foden and Jeremy Doku came on in the second half but could not find a leveler as Haaland stayed on the bench among the unused substitutes.

Man City won the League Cup five times in six seasons through 2021 and now have been eliminated in three straight seasons.

Guardiola’s team already won the UEFA Super Cup last month, still have Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup trophies to defend, and there is a first Club World Cup to play for in December in Saudi Arabia.

Liverpool comebacks

Liverpool are making a habit of conceding the first goal in games but are still unbeaten this season after beating Leicester 3-1 with three second-half goals.

A third-minute goal by Leicester’s Kasey McAteer made it five times in eight games that Liverpool trailed 1-0, and the second time it fell behind in the opening minutes at Anfield.

It would be Leicester’s only shot on target as Liverpool rallied with 29 goal attempts, 10 of them on target, and goals for Cody Gakpo, Dominik Szoboszlai and Diogo Jota.

Szoboszlai’s was the pick in the 70th, a rifled shot from 20 meters that glanced off the underside of the crossbar on its way to the net.

Arsenal, Chelsea advance

Arsenal and Chelsea came through games against Premier League opposition as all nine matches on Wednesday were won in regulation time and did not go directly to a penalty shootout.

Arsenal won 1-0 at Brentford thanks to Reiss Nelson’s goal in the eighth minutes after poor passing in the home defense.

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea fielded three players — Marc Cucurella, Robert Sanchez, Moises Caicedo — who were signed from Brighton in a 1-0 win over their old club.

Nicolas Jackson scored in the 50th for the Senegal forward’s second goal of the season.

Top-tier teams win

Everton reversed a 4-0 loss at Aston Villa in the Premier League last month to take a 2-1 win at Villa Park. James Garner scored in the 15th and Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the 50th for Everton, which now has two away wins in five days after a troubled start to the season.

There were routine wins for Fulham and Bournemouth at home to second-tier teams.

Fulham’s foundation for a 2-1 win over Norwich was a 12th-minute goal by Carlos Vinícius. Bournemouth struck twice in a three-minute spell early in the second half to beat Stoke 2-0.

West Ham needed a 70th-minute goal by Tomas Soucek in a 1-0 win at third-tier Lincoln.

The highest scoring game saw Blackburn beat Cardiff 5-2 in a clash of second-tier teams.

Fourth-round draw

In a draw stacked with all-Premier League matchups, Liverpool will go to Bournemouth and Arsenal is at West Ham. Chelsea got a favorable game hosting Blackburn.

Everton coach Sean Dyche will welcome his long-time former club Burnley, and Fulham must go to improving second-tier side Ipswich.

Fourth-tier Mansfield will host third-tier Port Vale to ensure at least one underdog will be in the quarterfinals. Third-tier Exeter hosts second-tier Middlesbrough.


Senegal and Congo get big wins at Africa Cup while Tanzania and Tunisia squeeze into knockout stage

Updated 31 December 2025
Follow

Senegal and Congo get big wins at Africa Cup while Tanzania and Tunisia squeeze into knockout stage

  • Tunisia advanced as Group C runner-up, but it wasn’t enough to appease their fans, who whistled the team

RABAT, Morocco: Senegal and Congo served notice of their intent with convincing wins at the Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday, when Tanzania and Tunisia grabbed the last places in the knockout stage.
Senegal, the 2021 champion, survived Kalidou Koulibaly’s sending off on his 100th appearance for the team by routing Benin 3-0 in Group D in Tangier. Congo finished second in the group on goal difference with a 3-0 win over already eliminated Botswana in Rabat.
Senegal, Congo and Benin were already assured of their places in the last 16.
But Tanzania and Tunisia were not. They progressed from Group C by playing out a 1-1 draw that eliminated Angola.
Taifa Stars survive
Feisal Salum’s goal for Tanzania, which canceled out Ismaël Gharbi’s penalty, sent the Taifa Stars to the last 16 as one of the six groups’ best third-place finishers.
Angola, which finished third in Group B, had been hoping for a favor from Tunisia to beat Tanzania and another from Nigeria, which complied by defeating Uganda 3-1.
But Tanzania’s goal proved the difference. Both Tanzania and Angola finished with two points and a goal difference of minus 1. Salum’s goal meant the Taifa Stars had scored more in the group stage (Tanzania’s three goals vs. Angola’s two), meaning they go through to the next round.
“I hope this will be a reminder to these players and the next generation of players on the potential of Tanzanian football,” Taifa Stars coach Miguel Gamondi said.
Tunisia advances as Group C runner-up, but it wasn’t enough to appease its fans, who whistled the team after supporting it in the rain in Rabat.
“We may not have played the best way possible, but we are very happy to have qualified,” Tunisia coach Sami Trabelsi said.
Three goalkeepers for Uganda
With his team already assured of top spot, Nigeria coach Eric Chelle opted to rest many of his regulars including Ademola Lookman, Alex Iwobi and Bright Osayi-Samuel. Victor Osimhen played from the start.
Fisayo Dele-Bashiru crossed for Paul Onuachu to score with a simple finish in the 28th, and Uganda’s slim hopes were effectively ended early in the second half. Goalkeeper Denis Onyango was unable to resume after the break, and his replacement Salim Magoola was sent off in the 50th for handling the ball outside the penalty area. Magoola couldn’t resist stopping a shot from Osimhen.
Uganda’s third-choice goalkeeper Nafian Alionzi soon conceded when Raphael Onyedika shot the ball between his legs for 2-0 in the 62nd, five minutes before Onyedika got another goal.
Rogers Mato restored some Ugandan pride in the 75th with a fine chip over Francis Uzoho in the Nigeria goal.
Looking ahead
Senegal’s big win over Benin ensured it will stay in Tangier for its first knockout game on Saturday against a third-place finisher from Groups B, E or F.
But the 2021 champion will be without the suspended Koulibaly.
Senegal coach Pape Thiaw warned his team will have “no room for errors” in the knockout stage.
“We will use the next few days to address these problems,” Thiaw said.
Nigeria will stay in Fez for a game against a third-place finisher on Jan. 5.
Congo next faces Algeria in Rabat on Jan. 6. The Leopards can get a good look at their opponents Wednesday, when Algeria plays Equatorial Guinea in their final group game.
Tunisia will play Mali in Casablanca on Saturday.
Benin and the other third-place finishers will face matches against group winners.