Arsenal's 2018 Carabao Cup final XI: Where are they now?

Arsenal face off against Manchester City in today's Carabao Cup final, a repeat of when they last met at this stage of the competition in 2018.

City were dominant victors that day, romping to a 3-0 win at Wembley Stadium to take home their fifth title. Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany and David Silva all got on the scoresheet to send the Gunners back to North London empty handed.

There have been two managers and plenty of changes at the Emirates Stadium since that fateful day in February 2018 with no Arsenal player remaining at the club. Here's where every Gunners starter from that dismal defeat are now.

Arsenal's 2018 Carabao Cup final XI: Where are they now?

Goalkeeper & Defenders

David Ospina (GK) - The shotstopper had a day to forget in this match as he conceded three goals, including a brutal lob by Aguero. He left Arsenal for Napoli in 2018 and after a permanent spell with Al Nassr, he has returned to his boyhood club Atlético Nacional, who he captains. He is also the record appearance maker for Colombia with 129 caps.

Calum Chambers (CB) - He remained with the Gunners for a further four years following the final and did see some game time under Mikel Arteta, but couldn't hold down a regular place in the team and departed for Aston Villa. Chambers is currently battling for promotion from League One as captain of Cardiff City.

Shkodran Mustafi (CB) - The less said about this man the better. He continued to be a starter for Arsenal under Unai Emery, but that soon faded following the arrival of Arteta and he was released to join Schalke in 2021 before heading to Levante ahead of his retirement to become an assistant coach of the Germany Under-17 team.

Laurent Koscielny (CB) - His only final as Gunners captain, he left the club for Bordeaux in controversial circumstances in the summer of 2019. Having retired from playing in 2022, he is now serving as sporting director of Lorient.

Midfielders

Héctor Bellerín (RM) - What could've been. Just a year after the final, he suffered an ACL injury that hindered his ability and prevented him from being a consistent player under Arteta. He left for Barcelona in 2022 before joining Sporting for six months and is now playing for Real Betis.

Jack Wilshere (CM) - This proved to be his last final as an Arsenal player as he left for West Ham on a free transfer months later. He retired following subsequent spells with Bournemouth and Aarhus Gymnastikforening before returning to Hale End as a coach. He is now manager of Luton Town in League One.

Granit Xhaka (CM) - The last player from this team to depart North London, he enjoyed a brilliant redemption arc under Arteta before leaving for Bayer Leverkusen in 2023. He helped Die Werkself win their first Bundesliga title in his debut season ahead of returning to the Premier League with Sunderland last summer.

Nacho Monreal (LM) - His final was cut short when he was brought off due to injury with the scoreline at 1-0. He remained at the Emirates for a further year before leaving for Real Sociedad, where he struggled with injuries, eventually leading to his retirement in 2022.

Forwards

Mesut Özil (RW) - He bounced in and out of the first team under Emery and did the same following Arteta's appointment. Failure to make a single appearance post-COVID led to him joining Fenerbahçe midway through the 2020/21 season and then spent a campaign with İstanbul Başakşehir before retiring in 2023.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (ST) - Another player who left in controversial fashion, he enjoyed brilliant goalscoring spells under Emery and Arteta, but eventually struggled to find consistency with that and attitude problems leading to a move to Barcelona in 2022. A dire spell at Chelsea followed before he moved to France with Marseille, leaving for Al-Qadsiah before returning to the Olympians.

Aaron Ramsey (LW) - The fan favourite had just one more season with the Gunners before departing on a free transfer for Juventus. Spells with Rangers, Nice, Cardiff City and Pumas followed, but he is currently without a club.

Manager

Arsène Wenger - Le Professeur. This was the last final for the legendary Gunners boss as he left the club just a matter of months later to bring an end to an historic 22-year spell in charge. He is now FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development, a role he has served since 2019.