Liverpool and West Ham will both be aiming to complete the Carabao Cup semi-final line-up when they face off at Anfield tonight.
Chelsea, Fulham and Middlesbrough are already through to the last four, with either the Reds or the Irons joining them in the hat for the draw once the result at Anfield is known.
Jurgen Klopp’s side had a perfect record at home until last Sunday, when Manchester United somehow left with a share of the spoils; although we have beaten David Moyes’ team at the venue already this season, prevailing 3-1 in the Premier League in September.
A top-heavy Liverpool injury list sees Diogo Jota, Alexis Mac Allister, Ben Doak, Joel Matip, Andy Robertson, Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic all ruled out, this leaving the manager with nowhere near as much scope for rotation as he would’ve liked, especially with Arsenal coming to town on Saturday.
With an eye to the weekend’s top-of-the-table league clash, the Reds boss has made six changes from the team which began the 0-0 draw against Man United three days ago.
As has been the case this season, Klopp goes with Caoimhin Kelleher as his starting goalkeeper for the Carabao Cup, with Alisson Becker dropping out with a view to Arsenal on Saturday.
The back four sees Joe Gomez and Jarell Quansah come in for Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate. In midfield, there’s just the one change as Curtis Jones replaced Ryan Gravenberch.
It looks as if Harvey Elliott will start on the right-hand side of attack, with Darwin Nunez through the middle and Cody Gakpo on the left. Mo Salah and Luis Diaz both drop to the bench.
You can catch the full team news below, courtesy of @LFC on X (formerly Twitter):
The Reds to face West Ham in the #CarabaoCup quarter-final 📋🔴#LIVWHU
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 20, 2023
📖 Anfield Annals: John Smith – Liverpool’s Red Knight and Most Successful Chairman