Arsenal and Manchester City both made it through to the next round of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night, although both teams needed more than 90 minutes to secure victory.
Arsenal saw off Norwich City in extra-time while City needed penalties to beat Wolverhampton after being held to a 0-0 draw at home. Now though, some reports have suggested the clubs might be disqualified after their application of the competition’s extra substitution rule – although such a drastic step seems unlikely.
Both clubs made four substitutions during their games – something which competition rules allow if a game goes into extra time. The issue, however, is the timing of the changes, with each club making two substitutions in normal time and two more in extra time.
The rules (which can be viewed here) stipulate that clubs participating in the game are “permitted to use an additional substitute (in extra time only).”
Norwich boss Daniel Farke said after the game that he was unsure if any rules had been broken, with reports suggesting the Canaries would be seeking clarification from the competition organisers.
It seems unlikely that either side will be disqualified from the competition or forced to replay their matches, as other reports have also suggested. The confusion appears to stem from a perceived lack of clarity in the wording of the rule, and it should also be noted that other clubs have made more than one substitutions in extra-time during earlier rounds of the competition.
What is far more probable, however, is that the EFL will make clear how the rule should be applied in the future.
