Southampton host the holders Chelsea, QPR host West Brom, Arsenal travel to Swansea and Manchester United are away to West Ham in the “all top flight clashes”.

 

 

Chelsea begin their defence of the trophy against fellow EPL club Southampton. With the current form they’re in, the Saints wouldn’t be too displeased. With any team in the EPL capable of beating the Blues at the moment, Soton will value their chances. But all Chelsea need is a spark to turn their season around and Southampton will hope it doesn’t ignite before this fixture.

 

In the other matches, both the Merseyside clubs have got non league sides. Liverpool are away to the winners of Lincoln City-Mansfield while their city rivals Everton face Cheltenham or Hereford.

 

But English giants Man United and Arsenal face possible 3rd round elimination as they are lined up against fellow Premier League sides.

United face West Ham and it is a known fact that Sir Alex will field in a young team, so West Ham will believe they can progress.

But undoubtedly, the tie of the round is Swansea vs Arsenal.

After a 2-0 loss against Swansea last weekend, Arsenal would love to take their revenge against them. But they should also respect the quality of Swansea this year especially with the inclusion of Spanish Surprise Michu.

 

 

The Complete Draw

Accrington Stanley or Oxford	v	Sheffield United
Aldershot	v	Rotherham or Notts County
Aston Villa	v	Ipswich
Barnsley	v	Burnley
Barrow or Macclesfield	v	Cardiff
Blackburn	v	Bristol City
Bolton	v	Sunderland
Brighton	v	Newcastle
Bury or Southend	v	Bradford or Brentford
Charlton	v	Huddersfield
Cheltenham or Hereford	v	Everton
Crawley	v	Reading
Crystal Palace	v	Stoke
Derby	v	Tranmere
Fulham	v	Blackpool
Hull	v	Leyton Orient
Leeds	v	Birmingham
Leicester	v	Burton
Lincoln or Mansfield	v	Liverpool
Luton	v	Wolves
Manchester City	v	Watford
Middlesbrough	v	Harrogate or Hastings
Millwall	v	Preston
Nottingham Forest	v	Oldham
Peterborough	v	Norwich
QPR	v	West Brom
Southampton	v	Chelsea
Swansea	v	Arsenal
Sheffield Wednesday	v	MK Dons
Tottenham	v	Coventry City
West Ham	v	Manchester United
Wigan	v	Bournemouthi