Kepa Arrizabalaga said he will be ready to send former club Chelsea out of the Carabao Cup as Arsenal bid to remain on course for their first trophy since 2020.
The Gunners are through to the semi-finals of the competition after Kepa saved Maxence Lacroix’s spot-kick in a dramatic 8-7 penalty shootout victory after a 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace at the Emirates.
Kepa spent seven years with the Blues before moving to north London in the summer, and he could now deny his old employers a spot in the first major final of the season.
And Kepa, who has made all three of his Arsenal appearances so far in the Carabao Cup, said: “Right now, if you want a trophy, and that’s something that we want, we have to fight against good teams.
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“Both semi-finals are big games, and it’s going to be tough, but we’ll prepare well for the game, and we’ll be ready and we’ll go for it.”
Arsenal will take on Chelsea for a place in the Wembley showpiece, with the first of two legs to be played at Stamford Bridge on January 14 before the return fixture at the Emirates on February 3.
Mikel Arteta’s players looked on course to reach the last four in regulation time before Marc Guehi’s late leveller.
Maxence Lacroix was the only player to miss his penalty in the shootout
Maxence Lacroix was the only player to miss his penalty in the shootout(Mike Egerton/PA)
The Palace captain’s goal marked the third time in Arsenal’s last five fixtures that their defence has been breached in or beyond the 90th minute.
And the 31-year-old Kepa continued: “We’ve conceded in a couple of games in the last minute so it’s something that we have to look at.
“But we are in the next round and we’re happy. We made a huge effort. We should have scored a couple in the first half. We played so well. Then the second half was more like 50-50.
“Credit to the guys, they took amazing penalties. They kept us in the game, and they gave me an opportunity to make a save.
William Saliba (centre) celebrates Arsenal’s opener against Palace
William Saliba (centre) celebrates Arsenal’s opener against Palace(Mike Egerton/PA)
“Emotionally, you have to be focused, be strong, because obviously when you concede in the last minute and then you have to go to penalties, you need to 100 per cent be focused on your penalty takers, you need to save. So it was a change of mindset, and it worked.”
At the other end of the pitch, Palace’s second-choice goalkeeper Walter Benitez produced a string of fine saves in the opening period before the visitors grew into the contest after the interval.
“We are not so happy with this result, but we are happy for the second half,” he said.
“We played very well and I’m happy for this, because the team proved it in every game. We played so well. Today we proved it in the second half and this is the most important point today.
“Of course, after penalties, it’s 50-50, and we are disappointed with this one, but we’ll continue to work.”