Carabao Cup semi-final draw: Holders Liverpool drawn to face Tottenham in last four of 2024/25 tournament | Football News happymamay

The Carabao Cup semi-final draw was held on Thursday evening, after Tottenham beat Manchester United 4-3.

After reaching the semi-finals for the fourth time in the past seven seasons, Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs will face defending champions Liverpool in the semi-finals, with the first leg taking place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Arne Sloat’s Reds beat Southampton 2-1 on Wednesday evening.

Newcastle – who beat Brentford 3-1 in the quarter-finals – will play Arsenal – who beat Crystal Palace thanks to a Gabriel Jesus hat-trick – in the first leg at the Emirates Stadium.

The draw left the possibility of holding the north London derby final.

The Carabao Cup semi-finals will be played in two stages over the week of 6 January and the week of 3 February.

Every match from this season’s competition is available to watch live Sky Sports.

Constant headache for Arsenal

Just like many teams fighting on all fronts, Arsenal’s January commitments do not look positive. Eight matches in three different competitions, before the Carabao Cup semi-final date is confirmed, bringing the total to nine matches.

How Mikel Arteta handles such a busy schedule could make or break their season. The new year begins with visits to Brentford and Brightonbefore hosting four consecutive home matches Man United In the FA Cup, Tottenham In the North London Derby, Aston Villa and Dinamo Zagreb In the Champions League.

The month ends with trips to Wolves And finally Girona.

It is a grueling program for a team that does not yet have convincing strength in depth. Arsenal’s second string needed reinforcements from the bench – Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka – to beat Crystal Palace in the quarter-finals, and suspect a similar line-up, without their names, would not have enough firepower to reach March’s final.

Arteta will have to strike the perfect balance to stay afloat.

Arsenal matches for January

• Brentford (A) – January 1
• Brighton (A) – January 4 – Live on Sky Sports
• Newcastle (at home) – January 6 (Carabao Cup) – Live on Sky Sports
• Manchester United (home) – January 12 (FA Cup)
• Tottenham (h) – January 15
• Aston Villa (home) – January 18 – Live on Sky Sports
• Dinamo Zagreb (home) – January 22 (UEFA Champions League)
• Wolves (A) – January 25
• Girona (A) – January 29 (UEFA Champions League)

Can Liverpool maintain the momentum in January?

Liverpool don’t face the toughest January in the Carabao Cup semi-final on paper, but they do face a trip to… Brentford Who remain unbeaten at home and the hosts Man United – who have just won at Al-Ittihad – in their first match of 2025.

Nottingham Forest There are no cups at the City Ground either. But there may be some opportunities for rotation as well – Accrington Stanley, Ipswich and night Visit Anfield despite the Champions League final group match in Eindhoven Not the easiest, Liverpool could have finished first in the first stage by then – and could benefit from a few more players in the squad again.

There is also the small matter of rearranging the Merseyside derby – although in what is already a busy January, that will likely have to wait until at least February.

Liverpool matches for January

• Manchester United (at home) – January 5 – Live on Sky Sports
• Newcastle (away) – January 6 (Carabao Cup) – Live on Sky Sports
• Accrington (home) – January 11 (FA Cup)
• Nottingham Forest (A) – January 14
• Brentford (A) – January 18
• Lille (at home) – January 21 (UEFA Champions League)
• Ipswich (H) – 25 January
• PSV Eindhoven (A) – January 29 (UEFA Champions League)

Tottenham’s difficult run has already extended

Spurs’ selection woes in key areas, particularly defensively, have done little to help Postecoglou build upward momentum in north London and they now face a tough January as the club searches for their first title in 16 years.

Newcastle Visit London before what should be a routine trip to London Tamworth In the third round of the FA Cup, but then Derby with Arsenalvisits Everton and HoffenheimAnd home games with Leicester and Elfsborg The end of a busy month.

Tottenham matches for January

• Newcastle (H) – January 4
• Liverpool (home) – January 6 (Carabao Cup) – Live on Sky Sports
• Tamworth A – January 12 (FA Cup)
• Arsenal (A) – January 15
• Everton (at home) – January 19 – Live on Sky Sports
• TSG Hoffenheim (away) – January 23 (European League).
• Leicester (home) – January 26
• IF Elfsborg (home) – January 30 (Europa League).

Freshness could give Newcastle the edge

Unlike their semi-final rivals, Newcastle have no European football to compete for in January, which could be the marginal gain Eddie Howe will look to exploit over the other three teams.

Even after a trip to… Arsenalthat it Bromleyfrom Sky Bet League Two, are at home in the FA Cup at St James’ Park, meaning Howe will be able to rotate accordingly if necessary. Local matches in the Premier League vs Wolves and Bournemouth He follows. It could be much worse.

Newcastle matches for January

• Tottenham (A) – January 4
• Arsenal (A) – before January 6 (Carabao Cup) – Live on Sky Sports
• Bromley (H) – January 12 (FA Cup)
• Wolves (H) – January 15
• Bournemouth (h) – January 18
• Southampton (A) – January 25