Arsenal, Newcastle and Liverpool advanced on Wednesday in the English League Cup, which will have plenty of power and prestige in its semifinal phase.
Gabriel Jesus scored a hat-trick, including a key second goal from an offside position, as Arsenal beat Crystal Palace 3-2 to advance to the last four for the first time since the 2021-22 season.
Liverpool kept their title defense alive by winning 2-1 at Southampton. Uruguayan Darwin Núñez and Harvey Elliott were the scorers in the first half for the Premier League leaders.
Newcastle defeated Brentford 3-1 thanks mainly to two first-half goals from Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali, and advanced to the semi-finals for the second time in three seasons.
The northeast London club, controlled by Saudi Arabia and which has not won a major trophy since 1955, lost the League Cup final to Manchester United in 2023.
United visits Tottenham this Thursday in the final quarterfinal match, guaranteeing that the semifinals will feature four of the biggest teams in the country.
Jesus takes advantage of the lack of VAR
Jesus had scored just one goal in 20 appearances in all competitions this season. That goal also came in the English League Cup, against second division Preston in October.
So Jesús’s first hat-trick with Arsenal came as something surprising, as did the quality of his finishing.
There was luck for Jesus too. Replays showed he was ahead when he stepped up to score his goal that made the score 2-1 in the 73rd minute at Emirates Stadium.
However, there is no video review until the semifinals of the competition, so the goal was not disallowed.
Jesús, who had equalized in the 54th with an excellent touch, chipping the ball over goalkeeper Dean Henderson. He completed his first hat-trick for Arsenal in the 81st, advancing unmarked and shooting low and powerfully past Henderson.
That gave his team a two-goal lead, but former Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah ensured a tense finish by heading in a cross in the 85th to make the score 3-1. Jean-Philippe Mateta had put Palace ahead after 4 minutes.
___
This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool.
