Carabao Cup: Havertz scores winner as Arsenal beat Chelsea to seal place in the final

Kai Havertz scored in stoppage time against his former club to give Arsenal a 1-0 win over visiting Chelsea on Tuesday, sealing a 4-2 win on aggregate and confirming the Gunners’ trip to Wembley for the English League Cup (Carabao Cup) final.

Without a trophy since 2020, Mikel Arteta’s side lead the Premier League by six points in their bid to become English champions for the first time since 2004, and also finished top of the Champions League standings after eight consecutive wins.

For the record, Arsenal are also through to the fourth round of the FA Cup.

«Over the last three or four years we’ve been at the top of the Premier League and we’ve come very close but we haven’t been good enough,» said Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice, referring to the team’s three consecutive second-place finishes.

«That’s why this season we have that extra desire and fire in our bellies to go one step further in every competition. There is still a long way to go, but to be in a cup final with this club is great.»

Arsenal will play either Manchester City or Newcastle in the final on March 22. City leads 2-0 on Wednesday heading into the second leg at home.

Havertz played for Chelsea from 2020 to 2023 and his result, which sealed the two-legged victory over his former club, was not much different from the result that saw Manchester City win the 2021 Champions League title ahead of the Stamford Bridge club.

After coming on as a substitute in the 69th minute on Tuesday, the German striker had the final say as he latched onto Rice’s pass on a counter-attack and rounded goalkeeper Robert Sánchez to play the ball home.

It was virtually the final kick of a scrappy and cagey match that contrasted with Arsenal’s 3-2 win at Stamford Bridge last month.

Chelsea were happy to absorb the pressure in the opening hour and stay in the match.

The visiting side then brought on Cole Palmer and Brazilian winger Estevao in an attempt to take the game to Arsenal, but found the best defense in England too stout to break and only managed long range efforts and a few dangerous set pieces.

Arsenal will be looking for a third League Cup title, after 1987 and 1993. The club has finished second six times, most recently against City in 2018.

It would be a second trophy under Arteta – and a first since 2020, when Arsenal won the FA Cup at the end of his first season as manager.

Arsenal are looking for a trophy to confirm the marked improvement under the Spanish coach in recent years. Apart from the near misses in the Premier League, the team has made four consecutive semi-final exits in various competitions, including against Newcastle in last season’s League Cup.

Published on February 4, 2026