League Cup & QF draw: Man United go out on PKs; City, Liverpool advance

Tuesday was something of the “Premier League wedding” in League Cup Round of 16 action, as PL sides Arsenal, Chelsea and Leicester City were all knocked out by (purportedly) lesser sides.

On Wednesday, the other four Round of 16 ties restored a bit of order, as Manchester City, Liverpool and Southampton all advanced to the quarterfinal round, though Manchester United fell to Middlesbrough, the only remaining non-PL side.

Man United and Boro played to a scoreless draw over 120 minutes, which sent the last remaining game of the round to penalty kicks at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney saw his attempt, United’s first, saved. Andreas Pereira converted United’s next attempt to level the sides at 1-for-2, but Michael Carrick followed up with a missed attempt, and Ashley Younghit the post on United’s fourth attempt, while Boro converted their next two to win 3-1.

Man City hammered fellow PL side Crystal Palace, 5-1 at the Etihad Stadium, with Manuel Pellegrini opting for a mixed lineup of first-team and reserve players, including Wilfried Bony, Yaya Toure, Kevin De Bruyne, Fernando, Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov. Bony, De Bruyne and Toure all got their names on the scoresheet once, as did 19-year-old Kelechi Iheanacho, who scored the late winner against Palace in league play earlier this year, and 17-year-old Manu Garcia.

35 miles to the west, at Anfield, Jurgen Klopp was busy picking up his first victory as Liverpool manager, a 1-0 victory over fellow PL side Bournemouth, thanks to Nathaniel Clyne‘s 17th-minute goal. Klopp went with a mostly reserve lineup against the Cherries, selecting only Clyne and Dejan Lovren from the regular first-team rotation.

Southampton advanced to the quarters with a 2-1 victory over a floundering, (permanent) manager-less Aston Villa at St Mary’s Stadium. Maya Yoshida put the hosts on top in the 51st minute and Graziano Pelle doubled the lead 26 minutes later, before Scott Sinclairpulled a goal back from the penalty spot in the 90th minute.

QUARTERFINAL DRAW

Middlesbrough vs. Everton
Southampton vs. Liverpool
Stoke City vs. Sheffield Wednesday
Man City vs. Hull City

FINAL

Manchester United 0-0 (1-3 PKs) Middlesbrough
Manchester City 5-1 Crystal Palace
Liverpool 1-0 Bournemouth
Southampton 2-1 Aston Villa

Source: NBC Sports.