Arteta calls Arsenal defeat to Fleetwood Town a sad day, refuses to blame players
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta congratulated Fleetwood Town on reaching the Carabao Cup quarterfinals and said he could not fault his players’ effort.
Fleetwood Town has sent English Premier League champions Arsenal packing from the Carabao Cup after a 5-3 penalty shootout defeat. The Gunners, who were reduced to ten men, were held to a 1-1 draw at full-time in a fourth-round fixture. Arsenal's early lead was short-lived as Viktor Gyokores equalized for Fleetwood in the 50th minute.
The London side could not capitalize on their advantage and were further hampered by a red card for Max Dowman, who was sent off for retaliation. Fleetwood's goalkeeper, Jay Lynch, made crucial saves in extra time, including stopping Bruno Guimaraes' penalty attempt. The only save Lynch made in the shootout was to deny Conor Haughey, who slotted the winning goal.
This is Arsenal's first loss to Fleetwood Town and is the earliest exit for an Arteta-managed Arsenal in the Carabao Cup. Fleetwood Town, however, have reached the quarter-finals for the first time in their history.
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- Carabao Cup: Why Arsenal lost to Fleetwood Town - Arteta dailypost.ng
- Fleetwood Town dump Arsenal out of Carabao Cup dailytrust.com
