Manchester City's defence of the Carabao Cup begins on Thursday night, and the fixture computer has handed them a home tie against Norwich City. Enzo Maresca's side go into it on a five-match winning run across all competitions, and the bookmakers expect that to become six.
Norwich arrive at the Etihad under Philippe Clement. The Canaries have lost their last three meetings with City, conceding fourteen goals without reply. A similar outcome is forecast again.
If the tie follows the script, City will face Brighton in the next round on Wednesday 28 October. That scheduling is forced by the Seagulls' trip to Anfield the Sunday before, and by the two clubs meeting each other on Halloween. It could have been a Manchester derby — had Fabian Hürzeler's Brighton not recovered from 2-0 down to win at Old Trafford on Wednesday. That was the first time Manchester United have surrendered a two-goal lead at home and lost in fifty years.
City's recent record in this competition is a useful reminder of the standards set. Back in March, Nico O'Reilly scored twice as City beat Arsenal 2-0 in the EFL Cup final at Wembley. It was the club's ninth triumph in the competition, one behind Liverpool's record, and a fifth under Pep Guardiola. Now, with Maresca in charge, City are among the favourites to reach the Wembley showpiece once more.
For those wanting to watch, Thursday's kick-off at the Etihad is at the slightly earlier time of 7:30pm BST. In the UK and Ireland, the match is live on Sky Sports+, available via SkyQ or Sky Glass on the red button, or online through SkyGO and NOW TV. In the United States, CBS hold the EFL Cup rights and the tie can be found on Paramount+. That makes it a 2:30pm start on the east coast and 11:30am Pacific Time.
City have won their last three meetings with the Canaries, scoring 14 unanswered goals.
Norwich's task is clear enough. City's is to avoid the sort of slip that turns a routine cup night into a story. The five-match winning run suggests they are in the mood to keep it routine.