Arsenal vs Chelsea prediction: Carabao Cup betting tips and odds

Attentions turn back to the Carabao Cup tonight as Arsenal look to inch closer to their first trophy of the season with a win over Chelsea at the Emirates (8pm, live on ITV1 & Sky Sports Main Event).

The Gunners lead the semi-final tie 3-2 from the first leg after goals from Ben White, Viktor Gyokeres and Martin Zubimendi but Chelsea will still believe they have a fighting chance, thanks largely to a late second goal of the night from Alejandro Garnacho three weeks ago.

The home side are still in with a chance of winning the quadruple this season after qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 100 per cent record, and they are six points clear at the top of the Premier League table, with betting sites recently cutting Arsenal’s quadruple odds to 40/1.

A win tonight would be a great start to that run and would see them reach their first final since 2020, when they won their only trophy under Mikel Arteta (an FA Cup). You have to go back to 2018 for the last time they were in the final of the Carabao Cup, when they were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City, who could be their opponents again.

They last lifted this trophy back in 1993, and they can’t take anything for granted against a Chelsea side who have shown that even a two-goal lead against them counts for nothing.

Liam Rosenior’s side were two down at the break on Saturday, at home to West Ham, but turned it around in the second half to win 3-2, thanks to goals from Joao Pedro, Marc Cucurella and Enzo Fernandez. They were also behind away in Napoli a week ago, but another strong second half earned them a 3-2 victory once more to secure their place in the top eight of the Champions League table.

Chelsea have reached the final of this competition 10 times in their history, winning it five times and losing it five times. Their last victory came in 2015 when they beat Tottenham in the final, and they have been the beaten finalists three times since then, to City and Liverpool (twice).

Mikel Arteta’s side are the second favourites in the Carabao Cup outright market on football betting sites to be celebrating at Wembley next month, behind Manchester City at odds of 6/5, while you can get 18/1 on the Blues.

There might be 13 points between these two in the league table, with Chelsea in fifth place, but in their two meetings so far, it has been tough to separate them.

They drew 1-1 at Stamford Bridge in the league, back in November, despite the home side playing the whole of the second half with just 10 men. Moises Caicedo was sent off after just 38 minutes, but it was Chelsea who took the lead 10 minutes later when Trevoh Chalobah scored only his third goal of the season.

Mikel Merino spared Arsenal’s blushes with an equaliser in the second half, but the Gunners won’t be able to rely on him this time around as he is set to undergo surgery on a foot injury, which could keep him out for a big part of the title run-in.

Chelsea have lost their last three matches at the Emirates and were beaten in their last match there in this competition.

After drawing at Stamford Bridge in the semi-final first leg, back in 2018, an own goal from Antonio Rudiger and a second-half strike from Granit Xhaka earned the Gunners a 2-1 win, despite Eden Hazard giving the visitors the lead.

Arsenal vs Chelsea prediction 1: Arsenal to win by one goal - 3/1 Bet365

Joao Pedro has been in great form since signing from Brighton in the summer and already has 15 goals for the club.

He signed for £60m in time to play in last summer’s Club World Cup, and he virtually repaid his transfer fee in his first three matches.

The 24-year-old scored twice in the 2-0 semi-final win over Fluminense and then scored the third goal in the win over Paris Saint-Germain in the final.

This season, he has 12 goals for the Blues, including five in his last five matches in all competitions against Brentford, Crystal Palace, Napoli and West Ham.

Arsenal vs Chelsea prediction 2: Pedro to score - 10/3 BetVictor

Arsenal: The Gunners will be without Merino (foot) and Bukayo Saka, who injured his groin in the warm-up ahead of the win at Leeds last weekend.

Chelsea: Jamie Gittens has been ruled out of the game after coming off in the first half of Saturday's game with a hamstring injury, but goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen could return. Estevao is currently on compassionate leave.

Bettors can claim a £5 free bet by wagering on tonight’s semi-final second leg at the Emirates Stadium.

NetBet are offering punters a free bet for tomorrow’s other semi-final, between Newcastle and Manchester City, as a reward for wagering £5 or more on Arsenal against Chelsea.

To qualify, users must have a NetBet account and wager a minimum of £5 on an Arsenal vs Chelsea bet builder consisting of at least three selections and minimum odds of 3/1.

Once the qualifying bet has settled, NetBet will credit bettors with a £5 free bet to use on a bet builder for Man City vs Newcastle.

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