SWANSEA OVERWHELMED EVERTON 3-0 at the Liberty Stadium with Roberto Martinez left with plenty of questions ahead of the Merseyside derby at the weekend.
Nathan Dyer opened the scoring just before the half-hour mark before Gylfi Sigurdsson made it 2-0 in the 65th minute.
Marvin Emnes added a third goal in the closing minutes as Welsh club Swansea beat Everton for the first time in their history.
It was the second match in a row where Everton had conceded three goals following their 3-2 league loss at home to Crystal Palace last weekend.
Sunderland, last season’s beaten finalists, bowed out following a 2-1 defeat by fellow Premier League side Stoke City.
Jozy Altidore’s first goal since December put Sunderland in front but Stoke hit back thanks to left-back Marc Muniesa first two goals for the club.
Third Division Milton Keynes Dons, who knocked English giants Manchester United out in the last round, continued their League Cup progress as Benik Afobe scored twice in a 2-0 win over Bradford.
Meanwhile fourth-tier Shrewsbury followed up their second round victory over Leicester by knocking out Championship side Norwich, chasing promotion to the Premier League, with a 1-0 win over Norwich.
Managerless Cardiff lost 3-0 at home Bournemouth, making while Derby saw off Championship rivals Reading 2-0.
Fulham, who recently sacked manager Felix Magath, won for the first time this season as the bottom of the Championship side beat third-tier Doncaster 2-1.
Sheffield United saw off fellow third tier side Leyton Orient 1-0.
