Premier League giants Arsenal will begin their Carabao Cup campaign on Wednesday with a third-round trip to face League One side Port Vale.
Mikel Arteta’s side are in excellent form and will be overwhelming favourites. The Valiants, however, have found some timely form of their own and have already knocked out higher-league opposition in this competition, setting the stage for a classic cup tie at Vale Park.
Port Vale vs Arsenal – Match Preview and Team News
- Date: Wednesday, 24 September 2025
- Kick-off: 8:00 pm BST
- Venue: Vale Park, Stoke-on-Trent
- Last Meeting: Port Vale 1-1 Arsenal (3-4 on penalties), Jan 14, 1998, FA Cup
Team News
Port Vale
Port Vale manager Darren Moore has a near full-strength squad to choose from for this huge cup tie. Ronan Curtis, who scored a last-minute penalty winner at the weekend, is expected to feature in attack alongside striker Devante Cole.
A packed out Vale Park awaits.
See you tomorrow, Valiants – and don't forget to bring the noise!
Up the Vale 👊#PVFC | #PVFC150 pic.twitter.com/Pj88p5p3d5
— Port Vale Football Club (@OfficialPVFC) September 23, 2025
Arsenal
Mikel Arteta will heavily rotate his squad for the trip to Vale Park. He has been boosted by the surprise early return of Bukayo Saka, who could make his first start since recovering from a hamstring injury. However, fellow winger Noni Madueke is unavailable with a knee injury. The likes of Kepa Arrizabalaga and Gabriel Martinelli are expected to start.
Form
Port Vale
The Valiants have built momentum with back-to-back victories in League One, lifting them after a difficult start to the season. Their cup form has been impressive, with victories over Championship sides Blackpool and Birmingham City proving they are capable of causing an upset.
Arsenal
The Gunners are in superb form, unbeaten in five of their last six matches across all competitions. They reached the semi-finals of this competition last season and will be determined to go further this year as they seek their first League Cup title since 1993.
Predicted Lineups
Port Vale predicted XI: Gauci; Humphreys, Debrah, Heneghan; Gabriel, Croasdale, Garrity, Byers, Shorrock; Cole, Curtis
Arsenal predicted XI: Kepa; White, Mosquera, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Norgaard, Nwaneri, Merino; Saka, Martinelli, Trossard.
How to watch Port Vale vs Arsenal?
The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Football in the UK, with coverage beginning at 7:45 pm BST.
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Arteta use Victor Gyokere in this match to really access him with Portvale today with other big players so as to know how he is fairing with Arsenal team mates because Gyokere is not yet in the speed gear he is still in gear One trying to accelerate but the gear refuses to enter to the next gear but he manages to get on gearb 2 I believe he can move ahead to find the speed gear let’s be patient and see if he can accelerate and his team mates try to give him passes that can lead to scoring goals we must be patient for now.