Fleetwood Town vs Arsenal Preview

A League Two side against one of the Premier League’s form teams: that is the shape of Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup fourth round tie at Highbury Stadium, where Fleetwood Town host Arsenal with a fifth round place on offer. The visitors arrive unbeaten in five across the Premier League and Champions League, while the hosts come in on the back of two straight defeats. The defensive contrast is stark, too. Arsenal have conceded three goals in their last five games in all competitions, while Fleetwood let in six across their last two alone. Kick-off is at 8pm GMT.

Fleetwood have lost their last two, both on the road. The most recent was a 2-1 defeat at Exeter on Saturday, and four days earlier they went down 4-2 away at Cheltenham in the league. Their home results tell a different story. A 2-0 win over Rotherham on 17 October came at Highbury Stadium, as did a 1-1 draw with Walsall a week before that and a 4-1 win over Barnsley in the EFL Trophy on 6 October. That makes two wins, a draw and two defeats from five, with ten goals scored and eight conceded. At home they are unbeaten in the three games in the sample, scoring seven and conceding twice. The Barnsley win was the only game in which they scored more than twice.

Four wins and a draw from five, ten goals scored, three conceded and three clean sheets: Arsenal’s recent numbers leave little to pick at. Saturday’s 2-0 home win over Everton was the latest, and before it came a 2-2 draw away at Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday, the only game in the sample they did not win and the only one in which they conceded more than once. Earlier in this run they won 1-0 at Nottingham Forest, beat Lille 3-0 at home in Europe and saw off Leeds 2-1 in the league. All three home games in the sample were wins, with a single goal conceded, while away from home they took a win and a draw. Tuesday’s tie will be their sixth game since 10 October.

There is no previous meeting between the two clubs in the head-to-head record, so this is new ground for both. There is a quirk of the venue, though: Arsenal’s former home was also known as Highbury, and on Tuesday they will play at a ground of the same name for the first competitive meeting between these sides. With no history to draw on, recent form is the only guide. That sets Arsenal’s three clean sheets in five against a Fleetwood side that has scored in every one of its last five matches.

Fleetwood against Arsenal is one of eight ties in this round, running from Tuesday to Thursday. The other Tuesday tie sees Bradford City host Peterborough United, while Wednesday’s schedule includes Liverpool against Chelsea and Manchester City against Brighton & Hove Albion.

In the UK, the tie is live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football, with streaming on Sky Go UK, SKY GO Extra and NOW, and radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and TalkSport Radio UK. Viewers in the USA can stream it on Paramount+, while in Canada it’s on DAZN Canada and fuboTV Canada.

Possible Lineups

Fleetwood Town — Form

Arsenal — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Other Fixtures This Week

Carabao Cup