Premier League champions Arsenal suffered a Carabao Cup exit on October 27, 2026, losing on penalties to League Two side Fleetwood Town after a 1-1 draw. Sixteen-year-old winger Max Dowman received a late red card during the match, prompting an angry post-match reprimand from manager Mikel Arteta.
Fleetwood Town Defeats Arsenal on Penalties
League Two club Fleetwood Town pulled off an upset on October 27, 2026, knocking Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Highbury Stadium. Exactly 84 places separate the two clubs in the English football pyramid, with Fleetwood sitting 18th in the fourth tier. Fulham loanee Aaron Loupalo-Bi opened the scoring for the hosts after 21 minutes against an experimental Arsenal lineup.
Arsenal dominated possession with 78 percent and recorded 26 shots during normal time, but struggled with their finishing. Kai Havertz missed three or four prominent scoring opportunities before Viktor Gyokeres bundled home an equalizer five minutes into the second half. Jay Lynch made late saves to force the shootout. Lynch then denied Bruno Guimaraes from the spot before teenage center-back Conor Haughey converted the decisive penalty to send the Cod Army into the quarter-finals.
Fleetwood is a team 84 places below Arsenal in the football pyramid. The first incident of the match came with under two minutes on the clock when the game was stopped for more than eight minutes when a drone was flown above the pitch. Arteta named an experimental side and gave a debut to 18-year-old Ceadach O’Neill, started 17-year-old Marli Salmon at centre back, 16-year-old Dowman on the wing while goalkeeper Illan Meslier was making his first start for the club too. But the Gunners boss surrounded that inexperience with seasoned internationals such as Jurrien Timber, Piero Hincapie, World Cup winner Martin Zubimendi, Champions League winner Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres. All of those players played a huge part in the Gunners winning the Premier League title last season. However, even after introducing captain Martin Odegaard and £75m signing Bruno Guimaraes from the bench, Arsenal produced a poor performance.
Max Dowman Sent Off and Reprimanded by Mikel Arteta
The evening turned sour for Arsenal when 16-year-old winger Max Dowman received a straight red card for violent conduct in the closing stages following a clash with Fleetwood defender Harrison Neal. Max Dowman is used to grabbing headlines for producing moments of magic. After being sent off in just his second start of the season as Arsenal suffered a shock loss to Fleetwood Town, the 16-year-old is facing the first test of his short career. Dowman scored twice as Arsenal beat Ipswich in the previous round of the Carabao Cup and manager Mikel Arteta rewarded him with another start in the last-16 tie. The pair challenged for a couple of 50-50s before a brawl broke out.
Dowman then went down the tunnel and Arteta appeared to lean towards and say something to the teenager as he walked past. Asked by reporters what he said to the youngster, Arteta explained it was something that we discussed before the game
before declining to elaborate further. The manager’s public reaction drew sharp criticism from pundits. Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson argued on Sky Sports that an experienced player would not have received the same treatment. Fellow Sky Sports pundit Jobi McAnuff said he could not understand the reaction, noting that Arteta probably feels it was petulant and naive, but adding that they have to remember he is 16.
If that’s Viktor Gyokeres, who’s an experienced international, he isn’t doing that – but he does that to a 16-year-old kid? He’s not the last person to get sent off for Arsenal, nor the first. If it was me, I’d have put my arm around him. It’s still 1-1, they’re still in the game.
Paul Merson, via Sky Sports
Fellow pundit Jobi McAnuff agreed that while the reaction stemmed from frustration, the public scolding of a 16-year-old was misjudged. Arteta defended his overall team selection and effort level, insisting the defeat stemmed from a lack of a clinical edge rather than poor attitude.
First of all, congratulations to Fleetwood for going through to the next round in the manner they’ve done it. A really sad day for us. I cannot fault at all the attitude of the players, I haven’t seen anybody not doing what is required at this level.
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal Manager, via Sky Sports
Arsenal Faces Liverpool with Depleted Squad
The League Cup exit marks a continuation of Arsenal’s long drought in the competition, having last won the tournament 33 years ago. Past lower-league exits include penalty losses to Bradford City in 2012 and Sheffield Wednesday in 2015 at the same stage.
The defeat leaves Arsenal with severe personnel shortages in wide areas ahead of their upcoming Premier League fixture against Liverpool on Sunday. Dowman faces a suspension following his red card. Bukayo Saka remains sidelined for approximately six weeks, Christos Tzolis is working toward recovery, and Noni Madueke missed the Fleetwood fixture due to an injury.
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