Not many would have forecast Bradford City from League One and Fleetwood Town from League Two to be the first two teams to book their place in the EFL Cup quarter-finals.
We were guaranteed to see at least one team from the third tier in the last eight of the competition as Adam Phillips' deflected strike ensured Michael Duff's Bradford defeated Peterborough United 1-0 at Valley Parade.
As for Fleetwood, they managed to bounce back from consecutive league defeats to Cheltenham Town and Exeter City by pulling off one of the biggest upsets in the competition's history as they conquered Premier League champions Arsenal on penalties.
The elimination of Mikel Arteta's Gunners has blown the EFL Cup wide open, and with Liverpool to face Chelsea for a quarter-final berth, there's a possibility that only one of the 'Big Six' will reach the last eight if Manchester City are knocked out by the in-form Brighton.
The 'Big Six' - known as Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, and to the debate of many, Tottenham Hotspur - have dominated the EFL Cup across the last decade, with only Newcastle United's triumph an exception to their supremacy.
Since the turn of the century, six teams outside the 'Big Six' have got their hands on the EFL Cup: Leicester City in 2000, Blackburn Rovers in 2002, Middlesbrough in 2004, Birmingham City in 2011, Swansea City in 2013 and Newcastle in 2025.
Given the competitiveness of this season's edition, there's every chance a new club will be adding their name to the roll of honour at Wembley in March.
When was the last time only one of the 'Big Six' reached the EFL Cup quarter-finals?
You would have to rewind back to the 1999/00 campaign for the last time the 'Big Six' were so poorly represented in the EFL Cup quarter-finals as all six teams failed to progress beyond the fourth round.
The last eight in 1999/00 consisted of eventual winners Leicester and four more Premier League clubs in Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, West Ham and Wimbledon.
Completing the line-up was three First Division sides: Bolton Wanderers, Fulham and Tranmere Rovers.
Of the 'Big Six', only Arsenal and Tottenham made it to the fourth round, where they were eliminated by Middlesbrough and Fulham respectively.
In the third round, Manchester United were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by Aston Villa, Chelsea lost 1-0 at home to Huddersfield Town and Liverpool were knocked out by Southampton.
The Saints were also victorious over Manchester City on penalties in the second round.
