Arsenal Aims for EFL Cup Glory Against Ipswich Town
Arsenal roll into a third competition on Tuesday with their season still spotless. Six games played across all fronts, six wins banked, and now a trip to Ipswich Town in the EFL Cup third round as Mikel Arteta’s side chase the one domestic trophy that keeps slipping from their grasp.
They arrive with momentum. A 2-0 victory over Sunderland at the weekend kept their Premier League start perfect, even if an “unacceptable” penalty call left tempers frayed. The performance, though, was controlled, professional, exactly what a team with serious ambitions is supposed to produce in awkward away fixtures.
But the EFL Cup tells a different story for Arsenal. Last season’s 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the final reopened an old wound, extending a drought in this competition that stretches all the way back to 1993. For a club that has rebuilt its standards under Arteta, that gap jars. The manager knows it. The players know it. Ipswich away is the first step in trying to correct it.
Ipswich have already had to scrap to get here, seeing off Leicester City 3-1 in the second round. Arsenal, entering at this stage, have no such warm-up. What they do have is a near-perfect record and a squad that, while not untouched by injury, still carries enough depth to rotate without feeling stripped bare.
White worry as Timber returns
The first concern from the Sunderland win came in the form of Ben White. The defender, ever-present so far this season, was seen clutching his groin and did not emerge for the second half. Arteta chose not to elaborate on the issue afterwards, but the sight alone was enough to push White firmly into the “major doubt” category for Tuesday’s tie.
His possible return date is listed as September 15 against Ipswich, but that remains optimistic rather than guaranteed. Arsenal will not take risks with a player so central to their structure, especially with bigger tests looming in the league and in Europe.
The anxiety around White is tempered by a timely boost. Jurrien Timber, who has been nursing his own groin problem, came through the second half at the Stadium of Light without a setback. He looked sharp, assured, and crucially, pain-free. If White is held back, Timber’s availability offers Arteta a ready-made solution rather than a reshuffle born of desperation.
Mosquera edging closer
Cristhian Mosquera is another name hovering on the brink of a return. The Spaniard has sat out Arsenal’s last three matches in all competitions after suffering a hamstring strain against Aston Villa. Those types of injuries can linger, but the updates from the manager have been increasingly positive.
Arteta has said Mosquera is doing “really well” in his recovery, and the defender has not yet been ruled out of the Ipswich clash. That phrasing matters. It suggests Mosquera is close enough to be in the conversation, even if the final call may hinge on how he responds in the last training sessions before the squad travels.
For a back line already juggling minutes and managing workloads, his presence, even on the bench, would be welcome.
Saliba the lone long-term absentee
Beyond those short-term concerns, one name continues to cast a longer shadow: William Saliba. The Frenchman remains Arsenal’s only confirmed long-term absentee, his back problem having flared up during the World Cup and stubbornly refused to clear.
His projected return date is November 21 against Newcastle United, a reminder that this is not a niggle but an issue that has reshaped Arteta’s defensive planning for months. Arsenal have learned to live without him, but they have not forgotten how influential he is. Every clean sheet without Saliba feels like a small victory against circumstance.
No suspensions, no excuses
On the disciplinary front, Arsenal travel clean. No suspensions, no bans, no enforced absences beyond the medical room. Arteta will have decisions to make, of course — how hard to rotate, who to protect, who to reward — but those calls will be tactical, not imposed.
An unbeaten start. A competition that has repeatedly eluded them. A tricky away tie against an Ipswich side already battle-hardened in this cup. If Arsenal are serious about ending that 31-year wait for EFL Cup glory, nights like this cannot be treated as a sideshow.
