Kepa Arrizabalaga produced the decisive moment in a marathon penalty shootout to send Arsenal into the Carabao Cup semi-finals, denying Crystal Palace after a dramatic 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium.
The Arsenal goalkeeper dived to his right to save the final spot-kick from Maxence Lacroix, sealing an 8-7 shootout victory. It concluded a nightmare evening for the Palace defender, who had earlier scored an own goal to give the Gunners the lead, only to see his side equalise deep into stoppage time.
The victory sets up a tantalising semi-final clash for Mikel Arteta’s side against London rivals Chelsea, to be played over two legs in January.
Late drama cancels out Gunners’ lead
For much of the evening, a much-changed Arsenal side struggled to break down a resolute Palace defence marshalled by goalkeeper Walter Benitez.
The deadlock was finally broken in the 80th minute under fortuitous circumstances. Lacroix, attempting to clear an Arsenal corner, inadvertently bundled the ball into his own net. The Gunners appeared to have weathered the storm, but Palace, who have enjoyed a historic 2025, refused to capitulate.
In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Adam Wharton floated a dangerous free-kick into the box. Jefferson Lerma won the initial header, knocking it down for Marc Guehi, who reacted quickest to fire past Arrizabalaga from close range.
The drama continued until the final seconds of open play, with Declan Rice presented with a golden opportunity to win it for the hosts, only to be denied by another excellent save from Benitez.
A tale of two goalkeepers
While Arrizabalaga claimed the headlines with the winning save, his counterpart Benitez was arguably the standout performer over the 90 minutes. The stand-in Palace keeper kept his side in the contest with a string of saves, notably denying Gabriel Jesus twice.
It was a significant night for Jesus, who was making his first start in 345 days following a gruelling rehabilitation from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Despite showing flashes of quality, the Brazilian could not find a way past Benitez.
Despite the progression, Mikel Arteta cut an animated and often frustrated figure on the touchline. The Arsenal manager made eight changes to the side that defeated Everton 1-0 at the weekend, and the lack of cohesion was evident.
The Gunners have struggled for fluency recently—drawing with Sunderland and Chelsea and losing to Aston Villa—and this performance did little to dispel concerns that they are operating below their early-season standards. Arteta will be particularly displeased with the lack of game management late on, specifically a needless free-kick conceded by William Saliba that led to the Palace equaliser.
For Crystal Palace, the defeat ends a cup run in what has arguably been the greatest year in the club’s history, having already secured the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025.
Manager Oliver Glasner has worked miracles with a thin squad, but the fatigue of a first-ever European campaign is beginning to show. The Eagles were missing key wing-back Daniel Munoz, and striker Jean-Philippe Mateta was forced to play through an injury. Compounding their woes, defender Chris Richards was forced off with what appeared to be a serious injury.
Despite the heartbreak of the shootout defeat, Glasner’s side showed immense character to take a top-tier Arsenal team to the wire, further cementing their reputation as one of the most resilient sides in English football.
Match Stats
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Result: Arsenal 1-1 Crystal Palace (Arsenal win 8-7 on penalties)
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Goals: Lacroix (OG) 80′; Guehi 90+5′
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Key Moment: Kepa Arrizabalaga save vs. Maxence Lacroix (Penalty Shootout)
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Next Up: Arsenal vs. Chelsea (Carabao Cup Semi-final)
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