Carabao Cup: Arsenal Take Crucial First-leg Lead In London Derby

Arsenal secured a 3–2 victory over Chelsea in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, taking a narrow lead into the second leg at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal opened the scoring early through Ben White, who headed home in the 7th minute following an error by Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sánchez.

The Gunners extended their advantage shortly after half-time when Viktor Gyökeres finished from close range to make it 2–0.

Chelsea responded after both sides made substitutions. Alejandro Garnacho pulled a goal back for the hosts soon after Arsenal’s second goal and struck again in the 83rd minute to reduce the deficit to one.

Arsenal restored a two-goal cushion when Martin Zubimendi scored in the 71st minute with a composed effort before Chelsea’s late reply.

The fixture saw multiple changes from both teams and several bookings, as Arsenal managed to maintain attacking control despite Chelsea’s late push.

Injuries and unavailable personnel restricted Chelsea’s options, with key players such as Reece James and Cole Palmer absent.

The second leg of the semi-final will be played at the Emirates Stadium, where Arsenal will look to protect their first-leg advantage and progress to the Carabao Cup final.