[NoSkillz]

Cup Competitions 2022-23



Carabao Cup

We made a spirited run in the Carabao Cup this year, starting with a easy 5-1 win against League Two side Notts County. We'd edge past third tier side Manfield 2-1 and then dominate Premier League side Brighton 2-0 at Riverside to move onto the fourth round. In one of our more impressive performances of the year, we'd march into Bet365 Stadium and knock off another Premier League side in Stoke by a 4-0 score and then duplicate that feat in the quarterfinals, knocking off yet another Premier League side in Watford by the same scoreline.

Heady stuff!

We'd move on to the semi-finals to face Premier League side Fulham and when West Ham pulled off a shocking 2-1 upset over Chelsea in the other semi, I should have really been smarter about my team selection for our own semi. The problem was that I had another huge Cup game coming up in three days against Man United and I almost immediately regretted not putting more emphasis on the Carabao Cup semi, one that we'd end up losing 3-2 at the Etihad. Fulham would end up winning over West Ham in the final to secure a place in the Europa League qualifiers for the next season...that could have been us. Oh well...a hell of a run for a Championship side regardless.

1st Round: Notts County 1 - 5 Middlesbrough
2nd Round: Middlesbrough 2 - 1 Mansfield
3rd Round: Middlesbrough 2 - 0 Brighton
4th Round: Stoke 0 - 4 Middlesbrough
Quarter-Finals: Middlesbrough 4 - 0 Watford
Semi-Finals: Fulham 3 - 2 Middlesbrough (Neutral Site - Etihad Stadium)



The Emirates FA Cup

We'd enter the FA Cup in the third round and get a tough draw away at Brighton, our second cup match against them this year. We'd edge them by a goal but that was only good enough to earn a financially lucrative home tie against Manchester United. In an emotionally charged, see-saw battle, we'd drop a tough 5-3 decision despite holding 57% of possession to fall out of the competition early.

3rd Round: Brighton 1 - 2 Middlesbrough
4th Round: Middlesbrough 3 - 5 Manchester United


One further note on cup competitions. Our U23 team would beat Chelsea's U23 squad 5-1 to win the 2023 Premier League Cup while our U18 team would win the U18 Premier League Cup after a 5-3 win over Liverpool's youth squad. So a fine season for our backups and prospects as well!