Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta - FIFA VAR
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta - FIFA VAR
Cup appointments usually rotate. Getting the same man for a semi-final, a final and then the next season’s third round is the sort of quirk supporters notice before the first whistle.
No VAR in the early rounds is policy, not an accident. Every ground in that round has to have the kit or nobody gets it.
Third-round nights are for squads. The official is the continuity the first team does not have.
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Peter Bankes will referee Arsenal’s Carabao Cup third-round tie at Ipswich on Tuesday. Constantine Hatzidakis and Alex James are the assistants, Josh Smith the fourth official. There will be no VAR.
Bankes took charge of Arsenal’s League Cup semi-final second leg against Chelsea last season and the final against Manchester City. That makes three consecutive games for the Gunners in the same competition. Daily Cannon, via OneFootball, call it unusual.
His Premier League file with Arsenal is mostly quiet. The loud exception was Brentford in 2023, when an offside was missed. The assistant made the first call and VAR did not draw the lines. Bankes was the on-field referee, not the video official.
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The EFL only uses VAR when every stadium in that round can host it. In practice the final at Wembley is the guaranteed VAR game. Last season it did not appear until the semi-finals because Cardiff, then in the Championship, hosted a quarter-final. Manchester City avoided a 16th-minute red in that round with no review available. They went on to win the cup.
Tuesday is Arsenal’s first League Cup outing of 2026-27. They go there on four Premier League wins from four after 2-0 at Sunderland. William Saliba is still out. Ben White left Wearside with a groin problem. Cristhian Mosquera is the defender Arteta said might be “around that time”. Jurrien Timber has minutes in his legs again.
Cup ties are where those returns get a look and where Gyokeres, Madueke or academy names can start. Bankes will referee whatever eleven Arteta names, without a screen to lean on.
Three games in a row is a curiosity, not a conspiracy. The bigger fact for Tuesday is no VAR and a patched defence. Ipswich away, Bankes in the middle, and a third-round night that will be decided on the pitch alone.
Arsenal badge outside Emirates stadium
Arsenal badge outside Emirates stadium