Fans slam ‘rigged’ Carabao Cup third round draw after noticing bizarre pattern

FANS have slammed the Carabao Cup draw and claimed it was rigged.

The remaining nine Premier League teams who are involved in European competition entered the tournament for round three.

1 Some fans have suggested the Carabao Cup draw was rigged Credit: Rex

Carabao Cup rules mean they cannot be drawn against each other in order to avoid clashes with European competitions .

As a result, some fans feel the draw has been rigged, with each of those nine Prem sides drawing a winner from the previous round.

One fan said: "What is this bulls**t. Basically rigged. A cup draw should be completely drawn at random."

Another added: "Rigging the Carabao cup draw to ensure the best teams in the country get an easy ride to the later rounds should be a major scandal."

And a third wrote: "Why’s the draw getting rigged so teams playing in Europe can’t play each other?"

The Carabao Cup third round will take place over two weeks, starting on September 15 and September 22.

Champions League , Europa League and Conference League games are also scheduled to take place across that fortnight.

That will allow each of the nine clubs to feature in Europe and in the Carabao Cup without any fixture being disrupted.

Port Vale vs Arsenal Lincoln vs Chelsea Tottenham vs Doncaster Huddersfield vs Manchester City Liverpool vs Southampton Fulham vs Cambridge Brentford vs Aston Villa Barnsley vs Brighton Swansea vs Nottingham Forest Newcastle United vs Bradford Sheffield Wednesday vs Grimsby Town Wolves vs Everton Crystal Palace vs Millwall Burnley vs Cardiff Wrexham vs Reading Wigan Athletic vs Wycombe Wanderers

If two Prem teams competing in Europe were drawn together, there is a risk of a postponement as the fixture could overlap with a European one.

A pre-draw also took place to determine whether the clubs involved in Europe would play at home or away.

Eight of those nine Premier League teams were drawn against EFL opposition, with Europa League Aston Villa facing Brentford .