Christopher Nkunku scored a hat-trick as Chelsea defeated Barrow 5-0, advancing to the League Cup's last 16 on Tuesday.
Despite having six goals in seven appearances this season, Nkunku has not secured a regular place in Enzo Maresca's team. Maresca made 11 changes from the lineup that beat West Ham 3-0 on Saturday but still managed to start players worth around £400 million ($533 million).
Joao Felix was another key player, assisting Nkunku's opener with a deft pass. Nkunku then added a second goal. Felix's free-kick hit the post and rebounded off Barrow’s goalkeeper Paul Farman for an own goal. Pedro Neto scored his first Chelsea goal from a Mykhailo Mudryk cross. Nkunku completed his hat-trick after dispossessing Farman and scoring into an empty net.
Manchester City narrowly won 2-1 against Watford.
City, dealing with the absence of midfielder Rodri due to suspected knee ligament damage, saw manager Pep Guardiola make nine changes. Jeremy Doku opened the scoring from a Jack Grealish pass five minutes in. Matheus Nunes, standing in for Rodri, scored his first goal for City. Tom Ince scored a late goal for Watford, but it was not enough to make a difference.
Aston Villa also faced lower-league opposition, winning 2-1 against Wycombe with goals from Emi Buendia and Jhon Duran. Leicester had a close match against Walsall, which went to penalties after a 0-0 draw. Leicester won the shootout 3-0.
Newcastle's game against AFC Wimbledon was postponed due to a sinkhole that appeared on the League Two side's pitch after heavy flooding in London. The match is rescheduled for October 1 at Newcastle's St. James Park.
Newcastle contributed £15,000 to help repair the pitch at Cherry Red Records Stadium.
Manchester United and Tottenham advanced to round four last week, while Liverpool will face West Ham and Arsenal will host Bolton in the remaining ties on Wednesday.
