League Two Fleetwood knock champions Arsenal out of Carabao Cup 5-3 on penalties
Fleetwood Town, two points above the League Two relegation zone, drew 1-1 with Premier League champions Arsenal and won the shootout 5-3, one of the biggest shocks in League Cup history.
At a glance
- Fleetwood Town of League Two beat Premier League champions Arsenal 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the Carabao Cup fourth round at Highbury Stadium, Fleetwood, on Tuesday, October 27.
- Aaron Loupalo-Bi gave Fleetwood the lead in the 21st minute; Viktor Gyokeres equalised five minutes after half-time.
- Fleetwood scored all five penalties; goalkeeper Jay Lynch saved from Bruno Guimaraes and Conor Haughey scored the winning kick.
- Arsenal's Max Dowman was sent off in the 90th minute, and a drone over the pitch stopped play for about seven minutes in the first half.
- Fleetwood, who sit just two points above the League Two relegation zone, are into the quarter-finals.
Fleetwood Town, a League Two club fighting relegation, knocked Premier League champions Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night, October 27, 2026. The fourth-round tie at Highbury Stadium in Fleetwood, Lancashire, ended 1-1, and the home side won the penalty shootout 5-3. It is one of the biggest upsets in the history of the English League Cup: Fleetwood are 18th in the fourth tier, just two points above the relegation zone, while Arsenal are the reigning champions of England.
How the match unfolded
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta made changes but still fielded a strong side, with Viktor Gyokeres and Kai Havertz up front and Illan Meslier in goal ahead of Kepa Arrizabalaga. Fleetwood took the lead in the 21st minute when forward Aaron Loupalo-Bi beat his defender and fired a left-footed shot past Meslier.
Play was stopped for about seven minutes in the first half because a drone was flying over the pitch. Arsenal dominated possession — close to 80% — but missed several chances, with Havertz among those who could not finish. Gyokeres levelled in the 50th minute. In the final stages Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch saved from substitutes Ben White and Martin Odegaard, and Arsenal teenager Max Dowman was sent off in the 90th minute after a clash with Harrison Neal that followed a heavy tackle. Referee Michael Salisbury showed him a straight red card. There was no extra time in this round, so the tie went straight to penalties.
| Fleetwood Town 1-1 Arsenal (Fleetwood win 5-3 on penalties) | |
|---|---|
| Competition | Carabao Cup, fourth round |
| Date | Tuesday, October 27, 2026 |
| Venue | Highbury Stadium, Fleetwood |
| Fleetwood goal | Aaron Loupalo-Bi, 21' |
| Arsenal goal | Viktor Gyokeres, 50' |
| Red card | Max Dowman (Arsenal), 90' |
| Referee | Michael Salisbury |
The shootout
Fleetwood went first and did not miss. Arsenal's fourth taker, Bruno Guimaraes, was the only player to fail, with Lynch diving to save, and defender Conor Haughey scored the decisive fifth kick.
| Order | Fleetwood | Arsenal |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ronan Coughlan — scored | Martin Odegaard — scored |
| 2 | Harrison Neal — scored | Kai Havertz — scored |
| 3 | Will Davies — scored | Viktor Gyokeres — scored |
| 4 | Andy Cannon — scored | Bruno Guimaraes — saved |
| 5 | Conor Haughey — scored | — |
Reactions
Arteta said his players' attitude was not the problem but that Arsenal "lacked other things" needed to create bigger margins, and said the team had to take the defeat on the chin. Odegaard said the side were not at their level. Fleetwood manager Matt Lawlor admitted his team had not practised penalties before the game, and Haughey said the same about his winning kick.
Background
Fleetwood were a non-league club as recently as 2012 and climbed as high as League One before dropping back to League Two. Their win over the champions caps a run in this season's competition that few expected from a team struggling near the bottom of the Football League.
Arsenal won the Premier League last season and are among the leading sides in England and the Champions League this term. The League Cup has often been used by big clubs to rotate their squads, and shocks against lower-league opposition are not new, but defeats for the reigning league champions against a fourth-tier side are very rare.
Why it matters
For Arsenal, the defeat ends their hopes of a domestic treble and removes one of their realistic trophies of the season, though it also frees up fixtures in a crowded schedule. Dowman's red card means a suspension for one of the club's brightest young players. For Fleetwood, a place in the quarter-finals brings prize money, extra television income and the chance of another big-club draw — important for a club of their size.
What happens next
Fleetwood will learn their quarter-final opponent when the draw is made after the remaining fourth-round ties, which include Liverpool against Chelsea and Manchester City against Brighton on Wednesday and Everton against Newcastle on Thursday. Arsenal return to the Premier League at Liverpool on Sunday, November 1 (4.30pm UK time), and then travel to Slavia Prague in the Champions League.
Questions people are asking
Who knocked Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup 2026?
League Two side Fleetwood Town knocked Arsenal out in the fourth round on October 27, 2026, winning 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Highbury Stadium in Fleetwood.
Who missed the penalty for Arsenal against Fleetwood?
Bruno Guimaraes had Arsenal's only miss in the shootout; his kick was saved by Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch. Conor Haughey then scored Fleetwood's fifth penalty to win the tie.
Who scored in Fleetwood vs Arsenal?
Aaron Loupalo-Bi scored for Fleetwood in the 21st minute and Viktor Gyokeres equalised for Arsenal in the 50th minute. The match finished 1-1 before the penalty shootout.
