Arsenal vs Liverpool LIVE: Carabao Cup semi-final result, final score and reaction from fixture tonight
Follow the latest updates from the second leg as the Gunners and Reds fight it out to face Chelsea at Wembley
A match that finally took place, but there was no actual contest. Arsenal, it could be argued, still didn’t really play.
Liverpool reached a fifth cup final of Jurgen Klopp’s time, and the first in this competition in six years, by comfortably beating Mikel Arteta’s side 2-0 in the League Cup semi-final second leg. This one wasn’t about false positives but false advertising. It just wasn’t the game that was billed, and certainly didn’t live up the enjoyable chaos that the competition’s semi-finals often offer.
Arteta’s side clearly have so much promise but also some way to go, as they lost another big game. Liverpool, and especially Diogo Jota, were just too good for them. There was almost an inevitability about that given all the ructions of the last week and how the north London derby was postponed. Arsenal could point to a stretched squad and how Thomas Partey came on just hours after arriving back from the African Cup of Nations, only to be sent off in the aimless final minutes.
That ended up being indicative in another way, as it summed up how Arsenal were always stretching to try and bridge the gap to Liverpool, but Klopp’s side were too good.
A side without Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane just showed Arsenal how it’s done, giving a semi-final occasionally clouded by an acrimonious atmosphere a muted finish.
Perhaps the only question from the entire game was whether Jota intended the finish that effectively settled the contest, or mishit it. It is someway irrelevant to the game, given the end result was a goal either way, but it was a rare moment when Aaron Ramsdale looked culpable. Follow all the latest reaction after Arsenal vs Liverpool below:
Arsenal vs Liverpool: Recent results
Arsenal have not played since the first leg of this Carabao Cup semi-final. They were due to face Tottenham in a north London derby on Sunday but had their request for a postponement accepted from the Premier League despite only having one reported Covid-19 case.
Granit Xhaka’s 24th minute red card in the previous leg meant that the Gunners had to hang on with 10-men and since they secured a goalless draw will now fancy their chance in front of their home crowd.
Liverpool’s only fixture since the last leg was a Premier League match against Brentford at the weekend. The Reds found it tough to break through the Brentford defence and it looked as though they were head into the break on level terms before Fabinho opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time.
Second-half goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Takumi Minamino secured the points for Liverpool. Minamino in particular will be pleased with his goal after missing a huge chance against Arsenal in this reverse fixture last week.
Arsenal vs Liverpool: Arteta on tonight’s game
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta spoke about the atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium and how the fans will give his players a boost in the crucial moments of tonight’s semi-final. He said:
We have the opportunity to get into a final, which is close to a title, against a big opponent, in our stadium, with our people, so we are very excited to play the game.
“They [the fans] are able to change the energy, the momentum of the game, give a massive lift to the players and give them confidence so if they can drive the team the way they have been doing recently, that would be incredibly helpful to give us the best possible chance to get in the final.”
Arsenal vs Liverpool: Robertson could reach 200
Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson could make his 200th appearance for the club in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final with Arsenal.
The Scot is one game away from bringing up his double century for the Reds, having arrived at the club from Hull City in the summer of 2017. Since joining Robertson has recorded 44 assists and scored six times.
Arsenal vs Liverpool: Injuries and absentees
Thomas Partey could feature for Arsenal this evening after his Ghana side were knocked out of the Africa Cup of Nations. Emile Smith Rowe, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Martin Odegaard are all doubts for the game.
Liverpool will be without Thiago Alcantara and Divock Origi who are both out until February at least and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who picked up an ankle injury in the match against Brentford.
Harvey Elliott and Nathaniel Phillips returned to training on Tuesday, though Elliot is still not fit enough to feature for the Reds. Naby Keita. Mo Salah and Sadio Mane are all still at the AFCON.
Arsenal vs Liverpool latest news
Here are the route to the semi-finals so far both teams have taken:
Arsenal
Second round: 6-0 away to West Brom
Third round: 3-0 home to AFC Wimbledon
Fourth round: 2-0 home to Leeds
Quarter-finals: 5-1 home to Sunderland
Semi-final first leg: 0-0 away to Liverpool
Liverpool
Third round: 3-0 away to Norwich
Fourth round: 2-0 away to Preston
Quarter-finals: 3-3 home to Leicester, won on penalties
Semi-finals first leg: 0-0 home to Arsenal
Arsenal vs Liverpool latest news
Premier League club Arsenal have unveiled a new shirt inspired by London Underground seats.
The design of the new Arsenal shirt was influenced by the bold pattern which appears on Piccadilly line trains that run past the club’s north London stadium.
The shirts were created following a collaboration between the club, Transport for London and sportswear manufacturer Adidas
Arsenal is the only football club with a Tube station named after it.
More here:
Arsenal launch new pre-match kit inspired by London Underground train seats
The Premier League side has released shirts with a design influenced by the bold pattern which appears on Piccadilly line trains
Arsenal vs Liverpool latest news
First leg recap: Granit Xhaka was sent-off and Arsenal ground out a draw, somehow - mostly thanks to a late, late miss from Taki Minamino.
The Gunners were praised for a backs against the wall type of performance after going down to 10 men, while critics took aim at Liverpool for a lack of goal threat with their two big guns away at the AFCON.
A 0-0 scoreline maybe left Arsenal the happier, but they have a lot to do still to reach the final, where Chelsea lie in wait for one of these teams. Worth remembering, too, that tonight at the Emirates was supposed to be the first leg in this semi-final, only for postponements and rescheduling to switch matters.
Check out the match report from a week ago here:
Arsenal show survival instincts after Granit Xhaka’s recurring nightmare
After being left in the lurch by Xhaka’s red card, Arsenal showed their mettle to keep the semi-final tie alive
Arsenal vs Liverpool latest news
Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders believes many were ready to write the Reds’ Carabao Cup hopes off after last week’s goalless draw with Arsenal but he is backing his side to triumph in the semi-final’s second leg on Thursday night.
Arsenal played for more than hour with 10 men at Anfield after the early dismissal of Granit Xhaka but nevertheless held Liverpool to a rare blank, and Mikel Arteta’s side will now hope to capitalise on home advantage in the second leg.
Lijnders sensed a mood of pessimism around Anfield after the first match, but insisted he had been looking forward to Thursday’s second leg from the moment the final whistle went.
“There was disappointment in the stadium, the disappointment of the fans, of us as a staff, so it was not the outside world we’re speaking about.” Lijnders said when about the post-match mood. “We need optimism in our squad.”
And he pointed to Liverpool’s Champions League round-of-16 success over Bayern Munich in March 2019, when they drew 0-0 at Anfield before winning 3-1 at the Allianz Arena, as he said neither side could claim an advantage at this stage.
“A semi-final over two legs is decided over two legs, it’s half-time, it’s 0-0,” he said. “We proved already against Bayern Munich, it was 0-0 at home and then we went there and we won. We know what we are capable of. We know what we want.”
Full report:
Pep Lijnders confident Liverpool can conquer Arsenal in Carabao Cup tie
Lijnders wants his squad to be optimistic about their chances of reaching the Carabao Cup final.
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