Overview
The Premier League and Champions League are still more prestigious targets, so the Carabao Cup may not be on Manchester City's top priority list. However, Pep Guardiola and his students are determined to regain their glory in this arena.
Man City dominated the Carabao Cup when they won 6 out of 8 seasons from 2013 2014 to 2020-2021, but since the victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the final match that season, the Etihad team has not lifted the cup once. They have not even qualified for the quarter-finals in recent seasons, including a defeat to Southampton in the 2022-2023 season.
Being in the semi-finals will be a positive signal for the blue team, especially since they have won all six of their appearances in the previous quarter-finals. Guardiola has helped Man City beat Huddersfield Town and Swansea City gently in previous rounds, before entering the quarter-finals in good form.
The 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace last weekend did not fully reflect the game, when the opponent made mistakes in defense, but Man City still showed their effectiveness in finishing. Guardiola's side are Arsenal's closest chasing opponents in the Premier League, having won nine of their last 10 home games in all competitions, except for the defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League.
Meanwhile, coach Keith Andrews's Brentford have overcome more difficult challenges in the Carabao Cup this season. The Bees beat Bournemouth and Aston Villa in turn, before reaching the quarter-finals with a resounding 5-0 win at Grimsby Town, with five different players scoring.
Brentford are still hungry for their first major trophy in the club's history, except for the championships in lower-level English football. This is the fourth time in the last 6 seasons they have participated in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, although their journey last season stopped against champions Newcastle United.
Before that, Brentford had only reached the Carabao Cup semi-finals once, losing to Tottenham Hotspur in 2021. Given the precedent and current form, Andrews is predicted to have many difficulties to repeat this achievement.
The visitors entered the match with a 3-match winless streak, including a 1-1 draw with Leeds United last weekend - a match in which the visitors created an outstanding number of chances and expected goals. More worryingly, Brentford are going through a series of 4 consecutive away defeats, conceding at least 2 goals in each match.
In the most recent encounter in October, Man City won 1-0 against Brentford, extending their unbeaten streak against this opponent to five years.
Personnel situation
Man City will travel to Selhurst Park without the services of Jeremy Doku. Guardiola confirmed the Belgian midfielder has a problem with his leg, but the extent of the injury has not been disclosed.
Doku is one of two big questions about the home team's strength in the upcoming match, along with experienced centre-back John Stones ( thigh injury). Meanwhile, Rodri's hamstring problem is expected to not be fully recovered until the end of the month, while Mateo Kovacic's ankle injury could keep the Croatian midfielder out for a long time.
On the other hand, Brentford received good news about their squad when key striker Kevin Schade returned from suspension, causing him to miss the draw with Leeds United. Reiss Nelson, a player loaned to Arsenal and scored in the 5-0 win over Grimsby in the previous round, could recover from injury in time to play. However, Josh Dasilva, Antoni Milambo and Fabio Carvalho are still in the process of being treated for knee injuries.
Expected lineup:
Man City: Trafford, Lewis, Khusanov, Ake, O'Reilly, Reijnders, Silva, Bobb, Cherki, Savinho, Haaland.
Brentford: Valdimarsson, Kayode, Collins, Van den Berg, Henry, Henderson, Yarmoliuk, Schade, Damsgaard, Lewis- Potter, Thiago.
The match between Man City and Brentford takes place at 2:30 am on December 18 (Vietnam time).
