Arsenal and Manchester United will turn their attentions to the Carling Cup this Tuesday evening, following convincing successes in the Premier League at the weekend.
With the League Cup having reached the quarter-final stages, both sides will be hopeful of securing some silverware in the competition, with the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool having already been eliminated.
However, both teams face fellow top-flight sides and will need to be focused to reach the last four.
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The Gunners host Wigan Athletic at the Emirates Stadium, looking to win their first trophy since the FA Cup back in 2005.
Boss Arsene Wenger has often used this competition as a testing ground for some of his younger players, but has confirmed that he will field a strong side for the visit of the Latics.
However, Cesc Fabregas and Thomas Vermaelen definitely miss out, while Robin van Persie is unlikely to be risked as he returns to full fitness.
Wigan will be looking for better luck in the capital than they enjoyed at the weekend, when a 3-1 loss at West Ham left them still inside the bottom three.
Roberto Martinez’s men are capable of springing a shock on their day and will hope to repeat their away goals win over the Gunners in the semi-finals of the competition in 2005-06.
However, last season a Carling Cup fourth round meeting at the Emirates finished 3-0 to the home side.
Just across London, Premier League strugglers West Ham play host to the Red Devils, hoping to use their weekend win over the Latics as a springboard for an upturn in form.
Avram Grant’s side have won just twice in the league this season, but they have seen off fellow top-flight clubs Sunderland and Stoke City in the last two rounds of the Carling Cup.
However, they will face a much tougher test against United, who now lead the Premier League by two points after a 7-1 drubbing of Blackburn Rovers, during which Dimitar Berbatov netted five goals.
They have been given hope by Sir Alex Ferguson leaving Berbatov out of his plans for Tuesday evening, with Javier Hernandez set to start in attack in place of the Bulgarian.
United have won the last six meetings of these two sides and earlier this season won 3-0 at Old Trafford in the league, with Wayne Rooney, Nani and Berbatov the goalscorers.
