The mid-week action of the Carabao Cup returns to England, and it brings along some of the most exciting fixtures lined up for the footballing faithful.

The round of 16 of the competition has the Premier League teams dominating the stage as Leicester City make their trip to the Pirelli Stadium to face Burton Albion. Meanwhile, Everton, Manchester City and Aston Villa host Watford, Southampton and Wolves respectively at home.

Fixtures like these usually ushers a sense of quandary, and often leads to perplexed conclusions. To avoid such mishap though, keep an eye on these games and head to Sportsbet.io to select your picks.

Liverpool vs Arsenal

There’s one thing certain about this fixture, and it’s goals. Liverpool taking on Arsenal has always been a goal fest, to say the least. Undefeated against the Gunners since 2015, Liverpool have smashed 16 goals in their last five meetings, while conceding six. Their last league cup meeting came a decade ago, when goals from Fran Merida and Nicklas Bendtner gave Arsenal a 2-1 win.

Fortunes have changed big time since. Arsenal, who are traditionally hard to beat in cup competitions, have experienced a dramatic fall in recent months. Apart from having defensive troubles, Emery’s men have struggled in front of goal.

Liverpool, on the other hand, are on a good run. Barring the 1-1 draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford, they have scored goals for fun this season. You can sure expect Arsenal to have a go at goal at times, but a win, at Anfield no less, seems nothing but a lucid dream.

Watch out for:

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: Liverpool enjoy the luxury of creative depth in their midfield. And as they prepare themselves for the showdown, a certain Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is expected to grab a major chunk of the headlines.

Following a 12-month injury lay-off, the 26-year-old marked his comeback with two goals in Liverpool’s 4-1 win over Genk in the Champions League. He will be expecting to make a similar impact when he faces his former team at his new home. 

Chelsea vs Manchester United

Regardless of what has been said, Chelsea head into the fixture with an inferior head to head record against Manchester United, having lost two of their last five encounters in all competition while winning just one.

In fact, their last meeting at Stamford Bridge came in the fifth round of the FA cup in February, where goals from Ander Herrera and Paul Pogba ensured Manchester United came up victorious. The recent downfall of Manchester United though tells a different story. Their away record has been abysmal, to say the least. Barring the recent 1-0 win over Partizan in the Europa League, United’s last victory away from home came against PSG in March.

The team has scored just three goals in their last five games in all competitions and this has sent the fanbase into a state of frenzy. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer did defeat Frank Lampard in their last meeting, but given United’s injury issues, expect the result to go the other way this time.

Watch out for:

Christian Pulisic: Pulisic, who was heading for the title of ‘worst transfer of the season’, revived his Chelsea career with a fantastic performance against Ajax in the Champions League and Burnley in the Premier League. Creator of the winner against the Dutch side, the American went on to score a perfect hat-trick at Turf Moor on Saturday. Expect his red-hot form to trouble the United defence on the night.

Head to Sportsbet.io to make your selections and let the ball rolling.

Featured image courtesy: AFP / Oli Scarff

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