Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur reconvene for the second leg of their EFL Cup semi-final at Anfield on Thursday night, with the visitors coming into the clash with a 1-0 lead on aggregate.
Both sides will be full of confidence after hugely important 2-0 wins on the road over the weekend, having implications at both ends of the Premier League table.
Match preview
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Almost a month has passed since Lucas Bergvall fired home a late winner for Spurs in the first leg of this semi-final showdown, which was ultimately mired in controversy.
Just minutes before netting that all-important goal, Bergvall was fortunate not to receive a second yellow card for a late lunge on Kostas Tsimikas, but Liverpool and their manager Arne Slot would also have admitted that they were well below par all evening in North London.
Very few will look past Liverpool turning this tie on its head in the return leg this week though, and extend their record number of final appearances in this competition to 15.
Jurgen Klopp's final honour at Liverpool was the EFL Cup last season, notching Liverpool's 10th win in the competition, and the bookmakers still make them favourites to retain their crown, despite trailing from the first leg, and Newcastle United having one foot in the final from the other semi.
A win of two goals is required here, and since losing to Nottingham Forest back in September, Liverpool are unbeaten in 15 at home, scoring at least twice on each occasion, and winning 13.
It was on the road where the Reds sealed a crucial victory in their hunt for a second league title in 35 years though, winning 2-0 at in-form Bournemouth, who caused Slot's side numerous problems throughout the afternoon.
A double from the ever-reliable Mohamed Salah secured the victory though, and kept Liverpool six points clear at the top of the Premier League, just a few days after they finished on top of the inaugural league phase in the Champions League.
The next three fixtures for Liverpool will be vital in keeping their hopes alive of completing an unprecedented quadruple, with a trip to Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup coming up at the weekend after this one, before they go to Goodison Park for the rearranged Merseyside derby against Everton.
For Tottenham, they may not get a better chance to end their long wait for a trophy than this one for quite some time.
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Leading heading into the second leg, with the potential of facing Newcastle in the final, as opposed to the formidable Manchester City they lost to in the 2021 final, means manager Ange Postecoglou could well stick to his promise of winning a trophy by his second season at the club.
However, the last two times Spurs have played a two-legged EFL Cup semi-final, both were against Chelsea, and ended in defeat, including in 2019 when they led 1-0 heading into the second leg away from home.
Anfield has brought Spurs very little joy in recent years either, with no win at this venue since 2011, and just three draws in 14 since then, but that would be enough to see them through to a fourth final since they won the competition in 2008.
It has been a very good week for Postecoglou though, beating Brentford 2-0 in the league to move up from 16th to 14th, just a few days after sealing their place in the last 16 of the Europa League with a routine win over Elfsborg, with three youngsters getting on the scoresheet.
Another shutout at the weekend now means Spurs have kept four clean sheets in eight games, despite all of the criticism around Postecoglou's tactics and the injury crisis they are facing.
Two of those did come against Elfsborg and Tamworth, and while they looked hopeless defensively against Everton and Leicester City recently, keeping two of English football's strongest attacks out in the form of Liverpool and Brentford cannot be discredited.
Team News
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After being forced off with a thigh injury at Bournemouth on Saturday, Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold is more than likely going to miss this one, but initial fears were alleviated following a scan which revealed the issue is not as bad as first thought.
Recent returns for both Diogo Jota and Curtis Jones mean Joe Gomez is the only other injury absentee for the hosts at present, with Liverpool set to be close to full-strength here.
The other places up for grabs are at left back where Andy Robertson and Tsimikas will compete for a start, and in midfield between Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai to partner Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch.
While players continue to return and make huge strides in recoveries, Spurs have been hit with another huge blow after Radu Dragusin was ruled out for the season with the knee injury he sustained against Elfsborg last week.
Micky van de Ven returned in that Europa League outing, and was held back at the weekend in preparation for this one, so the Dutch defender should be ready to go alongside Ben Davies in defence.
Postecoglou has revealed he is confident Destiny Udogie, Guglielmo Vicario, Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert and Timo Werner will all return in the next week or so, but for Cristian Romero and Dominic Solanke, their comebacks are a little further down the line.
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Alisson; Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Szoboszlai; Salah, Diaz, Gakpo
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Kinsky; Pedro Porro, Van de Ven, Davies, Gray; Bergvall, Bissouma, Bentancur; Kulusevski, Richarlison, Son
We say: Liverpool 5-1 Tottenham Hotspur
The first leg was the first time either of these sides has been involved in an EFL Cup game with fewer than three goals this season, and given Postecoglou's stubbornness to change and Liverpool's desperate need to score, another goal-fest could be in store, just not in Spurs' favour.
Spurs may have finally ended their dismal winless league run at the weekend, but they have still been regularly shipping goals against stronger opposition, and if Liverpool are on their game here, a repeat of the ruthless performance they showed in the league fixture in December, which ended 6-3, is likely.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
