EFL (Carabao) Cup Futures 2024/25 Season

The EFL Cup is entering the Quarterfinals with the 1st match taking place on December 18. There have been some quality teams that made it through, but there have also been a few surprises as well. With the competition now getting down to the final 8 teams, it is time to see who has the best chance at lifting the Carabao Cup this season. 

Arsenal +250: Arsenal is the team with the best chance at lifting the trophy this season according to the oddsmakers. Arsenal has been a dominant club over the last 2 seasons, but this year they have been struggling more as they currently sit at 5th in the Premier League table entering December. They are starting to get back into good form now, but they also have Champions League which has been taking away a lot of their focus as well. They have been one of the dominant teams in the league the last 2 seasons, but they always fell short and did not have the squad depth to make a run in European competition either. Now with their early struggles in the league and still with Champions League to focus on, this competition is not going to be very high on their list of priorities. They are up against Crystal Palace in the Quarterfinals, but they have not really played any quality teams in this competition with their last 2 wins coming against Preston and Bolton in the previous rounds. They will also have to match up with the winner of Tottenham/Man Utd in the next round so neither of those teams are going to be an easy pass either. This is not a competition that Arsenal has had success in either, winning just 2 EFL Cups in their club history, the last one coming in 1993. Arsenal does not have a lot of value to lift the trophy at this price. 

Liverpool +275: Liverpool is the team with the next best chance at lifting the trophy this season according to the oddsmakers. Liverpool has been a dominant team in the Premier League for years, but recently they have been coming up short over the last few seasons. Klopp decided to leave the team before the season as he was looking for a break from the sport, but their new manager has them going in the right direction. The quality has not changed much from last season, but the team itself sure has as they are currently leading the Premier League entering December and they have a large lead as well. They have the best defense in the league right now as they are the only team that has not conceded 10 goals this season, and they also have one of the better attacks. They also have Champions League to worry about, but they have been dominant in that competition as well and after playing 2nd fiddle to Man City the last few years, they are going to be focused on winning the Treble this year as they have a real chance to clean house in a all of these competitions. The quality is there as well as the depth and this team has not shown any signs of slowing down with their new manager. This is also a competition they have had a lot of success in as Liverpool actually has the most EFL Cups in the history of the competition. They have won 10 EFL Cups in their club history and they are also the defending champions from last season, winning it twice in the last 3 years. Liverpool is the best team in England right now and might even be the best team in Europe. There is a lot of value in Liverpool to lift the trophy this season as it is their competition to lose. 

Newcastle +450: Newcastle is the team with the next best chance at lifting the trophy this season according to the oddsmakers. Newcastle has been struggling in the Premier League this season as they currently sit in the middle of the table entering December and have never been the same as that team that went to Champions League seasons ago. They have quality in their squad but injuries have been an ongoing problem for the club over the years and it has affected their depth in these competitions. They do not have any European competitions to worry about this season so they will have more energy to focus on this, but they are not doing so well in the Premier League either so that is also a priority to them, finishing high in the table to be in European competition for next season. They have been very inconsistent this season and also have one of the weaker attacks in the league. They have had a tough path to get here as they did get through Nottingham Forest and Chelsea, but Brentford is also a bit of a wild card like Newcastle so they are not going to be an easy out in this round. Even if Newcastle gets through Brentford, they could have a date with Liverpool in the next round and that is no easy match to get through either. Newcastle does not have the quality to compete with some of the better teams in the competition right now and they have been too inconsistent to be trusted to make a deep run. This is not a competition they have had success in either as they have never won the EFL Cup and have only been to the Final twice, losing to Man Utd in 2023 and the other appearance being in 1976. Newcastle really should not be the 3rd best option to lift this trophy, there is no real value in them at this price. 

Tottenham +500: Tottenham is the team with the next best chance at lifting the trophy this season according to the oddsmakers. Tottenham is not having a great season as they currently sit in the middle of the table entering December. They do have one of the better attacks in the Premier League this season as well as having a good defense too, but they have been inconsistent in their matches with other competitions like Europa League to worry about as well. The team has a lot of quality and they have made strides over the last 2 seasons with their newer manager Postecoglou, but they have also been very erratic on defense with their high line coming back to bite them at times. Even in their recent matches going into December, they have fallen out of form a bit with their defense starting to concede more goals. They did have a tough challenge in the last round as they kicked out Man City, but Man Utd is not going to be an easier opponent as they have found new life under their new manager and also have a very good record in this competition. The next round could see a date with Arsenal as well so Tottenham does not have an easy path to the Final and it will take a toll on them with the other competitions taking away focus as well. Tottenham is 6th on the all-time list with 4 EFL Cups as well as being runners up 5 times, but the last time they actually won this competition was back in 2008. Tottenham has a good team but they are too inconsistent so there is no real value in them to lift the trophy at this price. 

Manchester United +600: Manchester United is the team with the next best chance at lifting the trophy this season according to the oddsmakers. Man Utd has been struggling a lot this season as they currently sit in the bottom half of the table entering December. They are in Europa League as well so they have that competition taking focus away, but Europa League is also not as big of a priority as a competition like Champions League would be for a club like Man Utd. They have a lot of quality on their team as well, but they have not been performing and it has been an ongoing problem going back to last season. They have finally fixed the issue though, sacking their manager a few weeks ago, and now they have been in great form since the sacking. They have played 6 matches under their new manager with 4 wins and no losses in that span. Their attack has been flowing much better in these matches which is key since they have a lot of quality attackers in their squad, but the defense has also tightened up as well. Everything is moving in the right direction for Man Utd and this new manager, and this is a great morale booster to try and win this competition and show the results to the players which will help them buy into the new methods. Man Utd has had a very easy path in this competition so far and now have to play Tottenham in the Quarterfinals, but Man Utd is playing like the more stable team right now and they have a lot more depth than Tottenham as well. They could see Arsenal in the next round which will not be easy, but they have the talent to beat a club like that and this new manager could be exactly what they need to push themselves over the line. Either way, this is a great competition for the new manager to focus on, and it is a competition they have had a lot of success in as well. Man Utd is 3rd on the all-time list with 6 EFL Cups with their most recent one coming just 2 seasons ago in 2023. They have also won 2 EFL Cups in the last 8 seasons as well. Man Utd is on the right path with their new manager and they very well could be a dark horse in this competition. There is some good value in Man Utd to lift the trophy at this price. 

There are some quality teams left in this competition, but a lot of external factors can also affect how teams play in this competition and apply their focus on it. Out of all the teams left, there is 1 team that is clearly on a roll right now and has been the best team in the league all season by far. Liverpool at +275 is the best option to lift this trophy with the form they have been in all season, but Man Utd at +600 is also a good option with their new manager boost. Man Utd makes a good dark horse as well since they can end up in the final with Liverpool. The best options here for a team to lift the EFL Cup this season are Liverpool at +275 and Manchester United at +600.