Why did Fleetwood have to lose player for Arsenal penalty shootout?

Fleetwood Town were forced to drop down to 10 men for their EFL Cup penalty shootout against Arsenal on Tuesday [Getty Images] Fleetwood Town were forced to surrender a player for their penalty shootout win over Arsenal at Highbury on Tuesday night. The Fisherman beat the Gunners 5-3 on penalties to book their place in the EFL Cup quarter-finals for the first time in the club's history. But as the two sides entered the shootout following a 1-1 draw in 90 minutes, the hosts were forced to elect a player to sit out. This is because teams are forced to play penalty shootouts with the same number of players involved on either side. Arsenal ended the match with 10 men after teenager Max Dowman was shown a red card in the second half. Law 10.3 of the International Football Association Board's laws of the game states that "if at the end of the match and before or during the kicks one team has a greater number of players than its opponents, it must reduce its numbers to the same number as its opponents and the referee must be informed of the name and number of each player excluded. "Any excluded player is not eligible to take part in the kicks." This includes goalkeepers defending the penalties, meaning Fleetwood named defender Jake Batty as the player to miss out on taking part in the shootout so the two sides were even. "Fleetwood have to nominate a player not take a penalty and that is Jake Batty because of Dowman's sending off, so it becomes 10 against 10," Sky Sports commentator Peter Drury explained at the time. This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. More questions answered... When is the EFL Cup quarter-final draw? Which game will Chelsea's Palmer miss after red card? What are Premier League rules on yellow card suspensions? Why is Wilcox in line of fire from Man Utd fans?