(Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Opinion – Reflecting on the Carabao Cup final loss

Originally posted on Just Arsenal | Last updated Mar 26, 2026 2:00 PM ET

Well, now that the dust has settled down, I thought it would be worth reflecting on what was a very disappointing day. Let’s start with the squad and how it affected the match. When one takes out Eze, Odegaard and Merino, then the creativity is gone, and there is no backup. Despite this, the first half should have seen us at least one goal to the good, and we went into half-time the stronger of the two sides. Two factors from those first forty-five minutes were: 1. The booking, which completely altered the way our LB played. 2. The inability of the referee to protect Saka from consistent fouls, one of which saw him being hauled down, manhandled and no foul given. At half-time, it seemed sensible to make substitutions and counter City’s ploy of standing four men outside the penalty area, to stop us using our normal system of building up from the back. Neither of these options happened, and it was inevitable that City would score. They outplayed us from the very first minute of the second half, controlled the midfield with impunity and deserved everything they got.

Out thought, Out manoeuvred

There is no doubt in my mind that Mikel was out-thought, outmanoeuvred, and reacted far too slowly to events on the field. I have always been hesitant to agree that Pep is the best ever, as there have been many brilliant coaches/managers before him, but watching how he completely dominated the way the game was to be played out was, in all honesty, a revelation. Mikel, for all his excellent work these last four years, is way behind Pep’s tactical brain, and the fact that no halftime changes were made is a simple example of that fact.

Any Positives

Were there any positives from our point of view? The way we took care of Haaland, who hardly did anything, is one important positive. Another is the way Ben White played and reacted – I made him our MOTM. Our fans were incredible from outside Wembley right up until the 90-minute mark, when all was lost, and they started leaving. The other negatives? Reading the “I told you so” remarks regarding Kepa’s mistake. Is there any keeper who hasn’t? The thought that the season has come to an end with this defeat, our fourth all season and despite leading the PL, quarter finals of the FA cup and last eight of the CL. No excuses, we were beaten by the better team on the day, the better tactician and the lack of creativity when losing Eze, Odegaard and Merino. Let’s hope we can get players back for the rest of the season, and I have this feeling that the action of some city players will be used as motivation when we play them in the PL. ken1945

This article first appeared on Just Arsenal and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: