Carabao Cup preview: Premier League big guns enter the fray

The Carabao Cup takes centre stage this week, with the leading Premier League sides entering the competition in the third round of the competition.

Chelsea, Arsenal, Everton and the two Manchester clubs are in action on Wednesday and the quintet are all fancied by the bookies to progress to the next round.

Read on for our look some of the key betting angles on the five games.

Chelsea v Nottingham Forest

Antonio Conte will make changes to his team, but Chelsea are big favourites to make it to the fourth round.

Eden Hazard looks set to get a run out as he completes his recovery from injury, while youngsters Kenedy and Charly Musonda should also be involved.

The visitors are big outsiders to beat Chelsea, but odds of 66/1 for a 1-0 win could be tempting if Conte’s side have an off-night.

Arsenal v Doncaster Rovers

The Gunners generally rotate their squad in the Carabao Cup, although odds of 1/11 to beat Doncaster suggest the bookmakers think this game is a foregone conclusion.

Arsenal are 6/1 to win 3-0 and 7/1 to win 4-0 and covering both to equal stakes could return a decent profit.

Doncaster’s best route to a goal could come from the penalty spot, so the 9/2 on offer for regular taker James Coppinger to score at any time could pay dividends.

Everton v Sunderland

It’s a bit early in the season for must-win games, but Everton boss Ronald Koeman will be desperate to reach the fourth round and lift some of the gloom around the club.

Everton are 2/7 to win in 90 minutes, with Sunderland on offer at 10/1.

The Black Cats have also struggled this season, but there were signs of improvement in their 1-1 draw at Hull City over the weekend. Odds of 10/1 to repeat that scoreline on Wednesday make plenty of appeals given Everton’s recent troubles.

Manchester United v Burton Albion

Jose Mourinho took the competition seriously last season and the move paid off as United lifted the trophy with a victory over Southampton in the final.

United are 6/1 joint-favourites alongside Manchester City for this season’s competition, but Mourinho has confirmed that David De Gea, Nemanja Matic, Antonio Valencia and Eric Bailly will be rested for the Burton tie.

Despite those absences, United should prove too strong for Nigel Clough’s side and the 10/1 available for a 5-0 victory has some appeal.

West Bromwich Albion v Manchester City

Pep Guardiola has previous form for tinkering with his line-ups in cup competitions, but the City boss would do well not to ignore the threat posed by the Baggies.

City are around 1/3 to win at the Hawthorns, with the home side available at 8/1 and Tony Pulis will see this game as an opportunity to spring a surprise over Guardiola’s team.

West Brom love a 1-0 scoreline and odds of 25/1 could look tremendous value at full-time on Wednesday.

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