Carabao Cup Second-Round Draw: Chelsea Host Luton, Moyes Returns to Preston
The Carabao Cup second-round draw has handed Chelsea a home tie against League One Luton Town, while Everton manager David Moyes is heading back to a club close to his heart — Preston North End, where he both played and managed.
The draw was broadcast live on Sky Sports Football on the evening of Monday 10 August 2026, during the build-up to Plymouth Argyle's first-round clash with Exeter City. Sky Sports presenter David Prutton hosted the proceedings at around 7.20pm, joined by pundits Jobi McAnuff and Jamie Mackie (EFL). The ties are scheduled for the week commencing 24 August 2026 (The Guardian).
For Chelsea, the draw pairs them with a Luton side two divisions below them in the football pyramid. Chelsea last lifted this trophy in 2015, and the new campaign will be their first under manager Xabi Alonso, appointed ahead of the 2026-27 season. A home draw against lower-league opposition gives Alonso an early chance to rotate his squad and blood younger players — a fixture that, on paper, his side will be expected to win comfortably.
The standout tie of the round is arguably Nottingham Forest against Leeds United — a Premier League meeting at the City Ground that would not look out of place in the league calendar. Both clubs will feel they have a genuine shot at a cup run, and the knockout format — one match, no second leg — means a bad night ends the journey there and then.
Moyes's return to Preston is the draw's most personal story. The Scot spent three years there as a player in the late 1990s and later had a spell as manager before his move to Everton in 2002. His Everton side travel to Deepdale for a tie that carries a narrative beyond the result, though Moyes will be acutely aware that sentiment counts for nothing once the whistle blows.
Elsewhere, Tottenham host Charlton Athletic of the Championship in a London derby. Fulham welcome League One AFC Wimbledon to Craven Cottage. Brentford face a longer trip to Birmingham City, while West Ham travel to Championship side Southampton. Newcastle United, now under new head coach Matthias Jaissle, host West Brom at St James' Park.
Ipswich take on Leicester at Portman Road in another all-Premier League pairing, and Premier League newcomers Hull City head to Stoke. Plymouth, who hosted the draw itself, drew Coventry at Home Park.
The Carabao Cup — English football's second major knockout competition after the FA Cup — sees clubs from the top four divisions compete. The 11 Premier League sides not involved in European competition entered at the second round; the remaining nine, those with European commitments, join in round three. The competition concludes with the final at Wembley on 21 March 2027 (The Guardian).
For fans of the smaller clubs, the second round is where the dream properly starts. A good draw can mean a famous night under the lights; for the Premier League giants, it is a chance to find rhythm early in a long season. Either way, the ties land in the last week of August — just as the league campaign finds its feet.
