Carabao Cup Semi-finals Fixtures, Confirmed

Tottenham Hotspur will take on holders Liverpool in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup, while Arsenal will host Newcastle.

The draw for the Carabao Cup semi-finals was made on Thursday night, following Tottenham’s 4-3 victory over Manchester United.

After reaching the semi-finals for the fourth time in the last seven seasons, Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs side will take on Liverpool in the last four, with the first leg at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Liverpool defeated Southampton 2-1 on Wednesday night.

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

The draw has left the possibility of a north London derby final.

The Carabao Cup semi-final ties will take place over two legs across the week commencing January 6 and the week beginning February 3.

Just like many teams fighting on all fronts, Arsenal’s January games do not read favourably. Eight games in three different competitions, and that is before a Carabao Cup semi-final date is confirmed, rounding the total up to nine.

How Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta deals with such a congested schedule could be the making or breaking of their season. The new year starts with visits to Brentford and Brighton, before a successive run of four home games, hosting Manchester United in the FA Cup, Tottenham in the North London derby, and Aston Villa and Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.

The month ends with trips to Wolves and finally Girona.

It is an exhausting programme for a squad not yet blessed with particularly convincing strength in depth. The Gunners’ second string needed reinforcements off the bench – Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka – to see off Crystal Palace in the quarters.

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