The Carabao Cup is heating up as just eight teams remain in the English competition.
Just Premier League sides remain with Southampton, Brentford, Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Crystal Palace and Tottenham Hotspur are vying for a day out at Wembley Stadium after advancing from the round of 16.
Some teams have had easier roads than others, but Tottenham Hotspur has a ton of momentum after defeating Manchester City. Same goes for Newcastle who had to get past Chelsea.
Each team will be feeling the excitement of the cup with a two-leg semifinal just one round away. Here are the favorites for the cup heading into the quarterfinals with the draw completed.
CHECK OUT THE 2024–25 CARABAO CUP DRAW HERE
The Favorites to Win the 2024–25 Carabao Cup: Ranked
8: Southampton
Poor Southampton. Of all the teams left in the competition, the Saints draw Liverpool who's the favorite to go all the way. At least the side will be playing at home, but it's looking like the end of the road barring a massive upset. The Saints have just one point through nine league games at the bottom of the table.
7: Crystal Palace
Oliver Glasner's side is off to a rough start in the Premier League winning just one of its first nine games. A trip to the Emirates Stadium is next up as the road gets even tougher after defeating Aston Villa. A mountain to climb for Palace.
6: Brentford
Thomas Frank's Brentford, despite winning and losing the same amount of matches so far this season (4), is still one of the best teams to watch outside of the big six in the Premier League. The Bees have to travel to St. James' Park, one of the most difficult away grounds in England, which might be the as far as Brentford goes in the cup.
5: Manchester United
Will it be Ruud van Nistelrooy or Rúben Amorim leading United from the touchline as we go deeper in the competition? That remains to be seen, but Van Nistelrooy had his former team scoring for fun in the round of 16. It's a tougher test next time out facing Tottenham Hotspur on the road. With questions surrounding who will succeed Ten Hag, United's chances of going through and winning a second League Cup in three years aren't as high as they normally would be.
4: Newcastle United
Newcastle United reached the final two seasons ago but fell to the recently fired Erik ten Hag and Manchester United at Wembley. With a home tie against Brentford, the Magpies should advance and anything can happen once it's a two-legged semi-final.
3: Tottenham Hotspur
Ange Postecoglou promised, more or less, silverware in his second season as Spurs boss. Well, after defeating Manchester City the momentum is on his side. Sure, Erling Haaland didn't play and there's no Rodri or Kevin De Bruyne, but you can only beat what's in front of you... and it's still City. As belief builds, so will the pressure to finally break the trophy drought.
Tottenham welcomes the red side of Manchester to north London in the quarterfinals with questions surrounding who exactly will be in the opposition's technical area.
2: Arsenal
Mikel Arteta needs another piece of silverware if he's going to keep the faith of the Arsenal fans. Back-to-back league challenges and a quarterfinal exit in last year's Champions League leave the fans wanting more. Hosting Crystal Palace puts Arsenal in the driver's seat to add another League Cup to its trophy cabinet.
Since the 2020 FA Cup final, Arteta's teams have notoriously gone out early in cup competitions. In a season that most agree needs proper silverware, winning the Carabao Cup will build confidence as the team tries to topple Manchester City in the league.
1: Liverpool
Arne Slot's Reds are near perfect to start the season in all competitions. A sole loss to Nottingham Forest and a draw away to Arsenal are the only blemishes on his record thus far. Liverpool should advance past Southampton without a problem. If Liverpool makes the semifinals, it's hard to go against the Reds with a home fixture at Anfield guaranteed.
A day out at Wembley would be massive for Slot as he continues to endear himself to the fan base as Jürgen Klopp's successor.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Favorites to Win the 2024–25 Carabao Cup: Ranked.
