Carabao Cup quarter-final draw in full: Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and more learn next opponents

Arne Slot didn’t do a whole lot of switching around his Liverpool lineup in the opening weeks of the season, to the extent that he was questioned about rotation and managing minutes several times and had to explain why he hadn’t needed to, much at least, at Feyenoord.

Fast forward a couple of months into his reign and there has certainly been more switching about in midweek action, Champions League and Carabao Cup matches offering an opportunity to fringe first-teamers and with one or two of those - Curtis Jones most notably - who had been onlookers at the start of the season being far more regularly in the initial XI for matches now.

But in an entertaining, though otherwise probably unremarkable, fourth round League Cup match at Brighton and Hove Albion, Slot perhaps gave an indication - and more importantly was shown the reasons - that there might now be the most significant early switch-up in his team over the coming weeks.

Ethan Nwaneri grabbed the spotlight with a stunning strike as Arsenal eased into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup with a 3-0 win over Preston.

The 17-year-old Nwaneri, who scored his first senior goals with a brace when the Gunners romped to a 5-1 win over Bolton in the previous round, was at the heart of things again and bent in a fine shot to double Arsenal’s lead after Gabriel Jesus opened the scoring with his first goal of the season.

Kai Havertz came off the bench to add a third as Arsenal extended Preston’s unwanted record of having played more games in this competition than any other club, now 185, without making the last eight.

Arsenal have long known they have a potential gem on their hands – it is two years since Nwaneri became the Premier League’s youngest player at the age of 15 and 181 days – and the attacking midfielder put in a performance which suggests he is ready to make a bigger contribution.

Newcastle United scored two goals in three first-half minutes to earn revenge over Chelsea with a 2-0 win and reach the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.

Three days on from their Premier League defeat to the Blues at Stamford Bridge, the Magpies responded with an impressive first-half display.

Alexander Isak pounced on a mistake at the back to score the opener before Joe Willock’s deflected header was turned in by Axel Disasi.

Chelsea put in an improved second-half performance and had their best chance of the match when Joao Felix fired wide, but last season’s runners-up were unable to find a response.

“It’s been a while – it feels good,” said Russell Martin, who watched the match from the stands due to a touchline ban, said of the victory.

“It’s never easy in the cup. We got through, we made it tougher than it should have been for sure but we also showed a bit of character to get through a bit of adversity.

“Thankfully a moment of quality won it for us. Big credit to Stoke but I think we deserved to win.”

Southampton manager Russell Martin revealed that his players were ‘annoyed’ after edging past Stoke City 3-2 in the Carabao Cup despite booking a place in the next round.

Martin said: “The guys were a bit annoyed coming in, they didn’t look very happy so I reminded them they’re allowed to smile.

“We won and got through and we’re in the quarter-final of a cup so I think it’s important. By the end they are smiling and the music was on. Hopefully we can carry that on on Saturday.”

Brighton 2-3 Liverpool

Aston Villa 1-2 Crystal Palace

Manchester United 5-2 Leicester

Newcastle 2-0 Chelsea

Preston 0-3 Arsenal

Tottenham 2-1 Manchester City (60’)

Southampton manager Russell Martin hopes to carry a feelgood factor into the Premier League after his struggling side survived a scare to scrape into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.

The top-flight’s bottom club blew a two-goal lead against Championship side Stoke before James Bree’s 88th-minute winner spared their blushes in a 3-2 success at St Mary’s.

“We need to celebrate every victory as a group, whether it’s against a Championship team in the cup, whether it’s a Premier League game, you have to enjoy those moments together,” said Martin, with one eye on Saturday’s home game against Everton.

James Bree struck a late winner as Premier League strugglers Southampton survived a major scare by scraping into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Championship side Stoke.

Goals from Potters pair Ashley Phillips and Tom Cannon threatened to force a penalty shoot-out after Saints blew a two-goal lead following Taylor Harwood-Bellis’ header and Adam Armstrong’s spot-kick.

Defender Bree prevented a new low in a miserable season so far for the top-flight’s bottom club by rifling home from range in the 88th minute at a sparsely-populated St Mary’s.

Before Manchester United went all in on targerting Ruben Amorim, Brentford manager Thomas Frank had been linked with a move to Old Trafford.

It never materialised and the Bees boss says he is perfectly happy where he is.

“I think it’s nice for the ego, that someone recognises I’m part of something, but I’m not focusing too much on it,” he said, drawing a line under that particular saga.

“I have a big responsibility to this club and I love it here, and we are one step closer to some more incredible matches.”

The Bees boss praised his team’s efforts in the penalty shootout rued the chances they missed during the match itself. Thomas Frank said: “We should have been up 2-0. But this time we had five good penalties and one good save.

“The only complaint is that we didn’t score a second goal in the first half. Second half, goal for them, suddenly it’s ‘what’s happening’?

“You know their players will come on and we know they will run through a brick wall. They worked incredibly hard, well organised.”