Liverpool fans may have been baffled at what they saw in the 72nd minute of the Carabao Cup clash against Chelsea on Wednesday night.
The tie was settled on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the regulation 90 minutes, with the Reds emerging triumphant after sudden death at Anfield.
Blues substitute Emmanuel Emegha had the chance to win it for his team after Mike Penders saved from Ryan Gravenberch, but the Dutch striker’s spot kick was kept out by Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Emegha involved in strange tussle with Van Dijk
Shortly after coming on midway through the second half, the 23-year-old was involved in a bizarre moment with Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk.
After the Reds’ number 4 played a backwards pass to Trey Nyoni in the middle third of the pitch, the Chelsea forward inexplicably charged straight at his fellow countryman and barged him to the ground at least a second after the ball had been played.
The LFC captain looked bemused as he exchanged a word with referee Darren England after picking himself up from the turf.
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Liverpool had the last laugh over their visitors
We’re not quite sure what motivated Emegha to run at Van Dijk and push him to the ground with the ball nowhere in sight, a bizarre incident which must’ve had Liverpool fans scratching their heads.
Between that curious episode and fluffing his chance to win the penalty shootout for Chelsea, it wasn’t the most glorious manner for the 23-year-old to make his debut for the Blues.
It wasn’t the most physical of matches overall, with just 21 fouls committed overall, although England still felt compelled to brandish four yellow cards (two for either team).
Andoni Iraola had been forthright in his ambitions to win the Carabao Cup in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, and he’ll no doubt have taken great delight in eliminating Xabi Alonso’s side, with the latter having been strongly linked with the Liverpool job before it was given to the former Bournemouth boss.
While our one-time number 14 tasted defeat at Anfield for the third season in a row, his opposite number can look forward to a quarter-final against Bournemouth in mid-December, and a more than plausible a chance at lifting a trophy in his first campaign in charge of LFC.
You can view Emegha’s push on Van Dijk below, taken from beIN SPORTS’ match coverage and shared via @mountdejong2119 on X:
MAIS EMEGHA C’EST QUOI SON PROBLÈME MDRRRRR ???? pic.twitter.com/vEcREwtGAG
— masonmountfrenkiedejong (@mountdejong2119) October 28, 2026