The defending champion Manchester United, sharply beaten at home by Newcastle (3-0), took the door in the English League Cup in the round of 16, as Arsenal defeated 3-1 on the ground of West Ham, Wednesday at London.
Liverpool and Chelsea enforced their rank, respectively against Bournemouth (2-1) and Blackburn (2-0), a second division team, in the same way as Fulham against Ipswich Town (3-1), current second in the Championship.
The season of disillusionment continued for Manchester United at Old Trafford, three days after a severe defeat, in its stadium and by the same score, against neighbor and rival Manchester City.
Erik ten Hag’s team, which fell to eighth place in the Premier League, saw the jump made last season, already under the control of the Dutch coach, fade further, thanks to Newcastle, which it had beaten 2-0 in the final of the last edition.
The Red Devils, with many usual substitutes, quickly lost their footing with goals from Miguel Almiron (28th, 1-0) and Lewis Hall (36th, 2-0). Joe Willock extended the ordeal of the locals (60th, 3-0).
Arsenal also had a bad evening at West Ham.
The League Cup was not really a priority for coach Mikel Arteta and his largely overhauled Gunners, eliminated as much by their bad luck as by their clumsiness.
West Ham, without any shots on target in the first period, took the advantage on a corner from Jarrod Bowen catapulted by defender Ben White with a header into his own goal (16th, 1-0).
Mohammed Kudus shot between the legs of Gabriel, who was too static, to push the advantage (50th, 2-0), before a shot from Bowen, deflected by an Arsenal defender, hit the mark again (60th, 3-0). Regular captain Martin Odegaard, who came on as a substitute, reduced the gap in the very last seconds of added time (90th 6, 3-1).
Without a European Cup to play and lagging behind in the league (11th after ten days), Chelsea invested more in the competition. Against Blackburn, Mauricio Pochettino fielded a high-level team, without leaving too many stars to rest.
A new snag would have left a mark at Stamford Bridge, four days after a 2-0 defeat against Brentford at home. But the Blues secured qualification without fear.
Young French defender Benoît Badiashile, scorer (30th, 1-0), made a winning comeback, having not worn the Blues jersey since May due to an injury. Raheem Sterling took advantage of a defensive error to increase the advantage to 2-0 (59th).
Liverpool eliminated Bournemouth, 17th in the Premier League, with more difficulty and with a significantly changed team, even if Mohamed Salah started.
Joined at 1-1 after the hour mark, the Reds escaped thanks to Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez (70th), coming off the bench to score his seventh goal of the season.
The quarter-finals, scheduled for the week of December 18, will have Chelsea-Newcastle and Liverpool-West Ham as the main matches, according to the draw made on Wednesday. The new Tom Thumb of the competition, Port Vale (3rd div.), who beat Mansfield (4th div.) on Tuesday, will host the Middlesbrough team (2nd div.).