Did Arsenal and Chelsea stroll through in to the EFL Cup quarter-finals last night?

They both made it through, and Arsenal never looked in any trouble against Leeds, easing to a 2-0 win. But Chelsea were forced to work far harder for their place in the last eight, eventually getting through on penalties against Southampton. The other tie, between Championship side QPR and League One Sunderland also went to penalties, with the Black Cats going into the last 8.

Chelsea 1-1 Southampton

Both sides rung the changes for their EFL Cup clash, Southampton making nine changes to the side held by Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday, Chelsea bringing in six new faces after their 7-0 win over Norwich. With both first-choice strikers, Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner, still out injured, it was Kai Havertz who headed the league leaders ahead. Southampton got straight back into the tie after the break through Che Adams, and both keepers had to make smart saves to send it to penalties. Kepa Arrizabalaga touched Theo Walcott’s spot kick onto the post, and when Will Smallbone also missed for the Saints, Reece James stepped up to score the decisive kick.

Total Penalties Taken (settled at 10)

As we pointed out in yesterday’s blog, both these teams had needed a penalty shootout to make it this far, and there was some money around in various markets against the perceived wisdom of an easy Chelsea win. Pre-match, the spread for Total Penalties Taken in a shootout was 1.9-2.3, so buyers won 7.7 times their bet as Chelsea won with the 10^th kick.

Arsenal 2-0 Leeds

After a cagey opening half, substitute Calum Chambers nodded Arsenal ahead before Eddie Nketiah, who has spent a period on loan at Leeds in the past, made it safe. The Gunners made nine changes from the side that beat Aston Villa 3-1 on Friday night, but it was one of the two players to keep his place, Ben White, who had to be substituted not long after half-time, suffering with a bug. White’s departure paved the way for Chambers to come on and break the deadlock and set Arsenal on their way to the quarter-finals.

Corners Squared (settled at 196)

EFL Cup ties are all settled on the night these days, with penalties used if there’s a deadlock after 90 minutes. Both sides were determined to play on the front foot and try and win this game in normal time, and Arsenal especially, with their wide attacking players Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli to the fore, forced a succession of corners, eventually scoring from one. The Gunners won the corners battle 10-4, but the Corners Squared index includes every corner in the game multiplied by itself. Pre-match the spread was set at 125-137, meaning buyers pocketed 59 times their stake.

How is Emma Raducanu doing since the US Open win?

The British number one won for the first time since her Major win, making it through to the 2^nd round of the Transylvania Open with a hard fought victory. Amazingly, her 4-6 7-5 6-1 win over Polona Hercog was her first ever win on the WTA Tour. While Covid regulations meant no fans were allowed, Raducanu’s 88-year-old grandmother Niculina, who lives in Bucharest, was present to see her win. The US Open champ plays Ana Bogdan in the 2^nd round tomorrow afternoon.

Total Points (settled at 193)

Raducanu was made to battle for her win over world number 124 Hercog in a match that lasted nearly two-and-a-half hours. Playing in her father Ian’s homeland for the first time, Raducanu made the kind of quick start she became accustomed to at the US Open, racing into a 3-0 lead. Her Slovenian opponent fought back though, winning the final five games of the first set to go ahead. A tight second set followed, but once the Brit had clinched that, she quickly took control of the decider, winning the first five games, to claim victory. With her family ties, it was guaranteed Raducanu would be giving 100% in this one, but Hercog was no easy opponent. Punters who expected this to be close bought Total Points in the match, with the spread set at 136-141, won 52 times their stake.