Man Utd makes their stance clear after the EFL confirmed that Grimsby Town fielded an ineligible player in their Carabao Cup upset.
The player in question – Clarke Oduor – was registered at 12:01pm the day before the game, missing the 12pm registration deadline by 60 seconds.
Oduor was subbed on in the 73rd minute, with the League Two side leading 2-0, before Man Utd sparked a comeback. He missed with his spot kick in the 12-11 penalty shootout win for Grimsby.
Grimsby self-reported the breach to EFL, who have punished the club with a £20,000 fine (£10,000 suspended).
According to the Daily Mail Sport, Manchester United “have chosen not to escalate the matter further amid calls from supporters for the match to be replayed, or for Grimsby Town to be kicked out of the competition.”
BBC Sport meanwhile say Manchester United are aware of the situation but have declined to comment.
Meanwhile, Mark Goldbridge tweeted: “If Grimsby fielded an ineligible player then they broke the rules end of. A minute over or not the rules are the rules. Kick them out and let us back in.
“Surprising United aren’t appealing that Grimsby illegal player thing. Morally yeah, it’s a big low but we’re broke. Being back in that tournament could be worth millions. Bro was on the pitch for the last 25 minutes! If he hadn’t come on we’d have won.”
Artell’s side have been drawn with Championship side Sheffield Wednesday in the third round of the competition later in September. See the draw HERE.
If Grimsby fielded an ineligible player then they broke the rules end of. A minute over or not the rules are the rules. Kick them out and let us back in
— Mark Goldbridge (@markgoldbridge) September 2, 2025
If shoe was on the other foot the media would be going mad that we should be booted out
— Mark Goldbridge (@markgoldbridge) September 2, 2025
EFL Statement: Grimsby Town fined after fielding ineligible player
📘 https://t.co/0DAEKxMLAC#EFL pic.twitter.com/j9TY1F96nD
— EFL Communications (@EFL_Comms) September 2, 2025
As per the EFL regulations, United have five working days – until next Monday – to decide if they want to appeal the decision.
22.5 A Club will have the right to appeal the penalty imposed by the Management Committee or any decision of a Disciplinary Commission in accordance with Regulation 95 save that the time limit for lodging the notice and grounds of the appeal set out in Regulation 95.3 shall be reduced to five business days.
EFL STATEMENT:
The EFL Board, acting as the Management Committee of the Carabao Cup, has today fined Grimsby Town Football Club £20,000 – of which £10,000 will be suspended until the end of Season 2025/26 – for having breached the Rules of the competition.
The breach relates to the Club fielding an ineligible player against Manchester United in a Round Two tie on 27 August 2025. Grimsby Town progressed to Round Three following a 12-11 penalty shoot-out win at Blundell Park.
The circumstances leading to this transgression are that Grimsby Town submitted the registration of Clarke Oduor at 12:01 pm on the day before the fixture i.e. shortly after the 12:00 pm deadline required in accordance with the 2025/26 competition rules.
The Club self-reported the breach upon discovery the day after the fixture had been completed.
Following a comprehensive review of all the evidence and considering prior decisions taken in respect of offences in the League Cup, the Board determined that the issuing of a fine followed precedent.
The Board further noted the Club’s non-compliance was not deliberate with no intention to deceive or mislead. The Club has since implemented several actions to prevent a similar occurrence in the future.
The Club will be liable for the suspended sum of £10,000, if they were to again field an ineligible player in any League Competition between now and the end of Season 2025/26.
Grimsby Town FC has issued a statement acknowledging the EFL’s decision to fine the Club for a late player registration.#GTFC
— Grimsby Town F.C. (@officialgtfc) September 2, 2025
GRIMSBY STATEMENT:
Grimsby Town Football Club acknowledges today’s decision by the EFL regarding an error in the registration of Clarke Oduor ahead of our Carabao Cup Round Two fixture against Manchester United.
The registration of Oduor was submitted to the EFL at one minute past the deadline and the issue was not immediately identified by the Club due to a computer problem being experienced at Grimsby.
We accept the fine imposed and fully recognise the importance of adhering to competition rules and regulations. This mistake was not deliberate, and the Club acted transparently by self-reporting the breach as soon as it came to light.
Since this incident, we have undertaken a thorough review of our processes and implemented strengthened measures to ensure it cannot happen again.
We thank the EFL Board for recognising our co-operation and intent, and we remain fully committed to maintaining the highest professional and regulatory standards.
The Club won’t make any further comment on the matter and now looks forward to focusing on preparations for our upcoming fixtures.
Here’s how fans reacted as Man Utd make their stance clear after Grimsby fielded an ineligible player in the Carabao Cup upset…
@AndyChilt: As a #GTFC fan, I say replay the game… Get Man U down here again in the pissing rain, we’ll earn another £250k in TV revenue and then we can beat them in 90mins, like we should of done last game 😉
@RobMoore_1: The irony if the monetisation of the replies exceeds the fine …. Go United fans! #gtfc #utm @DN35GTFC
@StoakesJack: ahahahahaha cant wait for the so called united fans to be rattled by this
@mrwilldouglas: We’ll make that money back from the engagements by crying Man United supporters on socials. GTFC
@VFTPgtfc: Calm down Man United fans. He came on as a sub, we conceded two goals and missed his penalty. More of help then hinderance #gtfc
@cooomber: Utd getting rattled fail to realise the player in question actually missed a penalty…
@DN33_Exiles: Ten grand well spent 👍
@J_Goulding86: The amount of #ManUnited fans in the comments and in the comments of other posts like it is mad! It’s safe to say #ManUnited fans are trying to force a derby with Grimsby Town! Not what I had happening in 2025 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
@gladwell89: I mean … do we really wanna get hammered by Grimsby town again. Get a grip we got battered 🤣 #ManchesterUnited #GTFC
@FootyAccums: Quite hilarious how a Manchester United fan is calling for his club to be let back into a competition where they lost to a League Two side 😂
Get over yourself, you absolute cunt.
Liverpool did the exact same in 2019 and also got a fine. You lost, end of. The player in question, came on had zero fucking impact on the game, missed his penalty in the shootout and you still that’s right, lost.. grow the fuck up, prick! https://t.co/6e9QqYQVFu pic.twitter.com/rmYPuKw0BM— Ben Bell (@BenGTFCBell) September 2, 2025
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