Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Carabao Cup result and final score as Cody Gakpo completes dramatic turnaround
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham: Two goals from Gakpo and Curtis Jones in three second-half minutes turned the tie around as the hosts came from behind at Anfield
Substitutes Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez came off the bench to help turn around Liverpool’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at home to Fulham and ensured they will take a 2-1 lead to Craven Cottage.
The pair were introduced early in the second half with the hosts trailing to Willian’s 19th-minute goal after a Virgil van Dijk error. Liverpool were struggling for creativity without the injured Trent Alexander-Arnold - who helped turn a 3-2 Fulham lead into a 4-3 Reds win in last month’s Premier League meeting - but as at Arsenal in the FA Cup at the weekend Jurgen Klopp’s changes altered the game.
Nunez added a directness which had been lacking while Gakpo brought the composure and control to midfield Ryan Gravenberch had not before he was replaced by his Netherlands team-mate. And the pair combined for Gakpo to score in the 71st minute, just three minutes after Curtis Jones’ deflected equaliser.
Liverpool will travel to Craven Cottage for the second leg on January 24. Chelsea suffered a surprise 1-0 loss at Middlesbrough in the first leg of the other semi-final on Tuesday.
Follow live updates from Liverpool vs Fulham in the Carabao Cup semi-finals, below.
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Will it be Liverpool or Fulham left dreaming of Wembley tonight? This is a two-legged tie, but the final is within reach...
When is the Carabao Cup final?
There could be a new winner of the Carabao Cup this season with Liverpool, Chelsea, Middlesbrough and Fulham left in the semi-finals
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Marco Silva on Fulham’s cup “dream”: “It is going to be a remarkable situation for this football club. It is clear for us, it is a dream and for our fans we love that they are able to dream which means we are doing something really good.
“For me it is much more of an ambition than a dream. For me it is an aim because we worked so hard to be there and we want to take another step by facing Liverpool and getting to the final.
“That’s the ambition (to make final). We are going to play and understand the quality of Liverpool and the huge challenge we have ahead of us. From that moment where we beat Tottenham (second round) we have been so serious with the approach.
“If you get to this stage (semi-final) you want to win more and have the ambition to be at Wembley.”
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Liverpool will be without Mohamed Salah tonight, with his Egypt side facing Mozambique in their opening game on Sunday.
Here’s Karl Matchett with a good read on how Salah can add to his legacy at the Africa Cup of Nations this month.
Salah has one last page of history to write at the Afcon with Egypt
The Liverpool star assisted a goal in Egypt’s warm-up win over Tanzania and hit the bar with a penalty which went in off the goalkeeper - can he now fire his nation to victory in Ivory Coast?
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Joe Gomez, who makes his 200th Liverpool appearance tonight, insists the Reds will not get giddy at the prospect of another potential quadruple tilt, but has acknowledged there is a fire in the squad to achieve this season.
“We’re all just full of desire and want to make the best out of the season,” he said. “All we can do is take it one game at a time. I know it’s a cliche, but there’s desire and we have a platform to build on.
“We can’t take that for granted, as we know with last season it’s not always plain-sailing and we went through rough patches but we built from it and learnt from it. So, we have to keep at it and see where it takes us.”
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Team news!
Liverpool make five changes from Sunday’s win at Arsenal. Virgil van Dijk returns to captain the side, with Conor Bradley replacing the injured Trent Alexander-Arnold at right back. Ryan Gravenberch comes into midfield and there is a start for Diogo Jota in attack as Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez drop out. As expected, Caoimhin Kelleher starts in goal ahead of Alisson.
Marco Silva also makes five changes from the weekend, and in come some of the big-hitters: Bernd Leno, Antonee Robinson, Joao Palhinha, Willian and Raul Jimenez all return to the starting line-up.
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Fulham team to face Liverpool:
Leno, Castagne, Tosin, Diop, Robinson, Palhinha, Reed, Pereira, DeCordova Reid, Jimenez, Willian
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
Liverpool team to face Fulham:
Kelleher, Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Gomez, Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Jones, Elliott, Jota, Diaz
Liverpool vs Fulham LIVE: Latest Carabao Cup semi-final updates
When is the match?
The game kicks off at Anfield at 8pm GMT on Wednesday 10 January.
Where can I watch it?
The match will be broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football. Subscribers can stream the match via the Sky Go app.
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Good evening
Liverpool host Fulham in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tonight. The Premier League leaders are on the hunt for four trophies this season and will hope the Carabao Cup is the first of them, although Marco Silva’s side are set to be tough opposition and will look to make life difficult for the Reds ahead of the return leg at Craven Cottage later this month.
Jurgen Klopp is without a number of key players as Liverpool continue to battle on multiple fronts, with the news that influential vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to be out for at least three weeks adding to the absences of Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo while they are at the Africa Cup of Nations and Asia Cup respectively.
The Liverpool manager could therefore be forced to shuffle his pack following Sunday’s 2-0 win over Arsenal in the FA Cup third round, while Fulham are set to be close to full strength as the Cottagers target their first ever major domestic honour. Fulham have not played in a major final since losing the Uefa Cup to Juventus back in 2009 but are now dreaming of Wembley, with Middlesbrough defeating Chelsea in the first leg of the other semi-final at the Riverside last night.
Follow all the build-up to tonight’s match in our live blog.
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