At Anfield, Liverpool once again made a swift comeback to defeat Fulham, causing immense relief for Jürgen Klopp and despair for Marco Silva.
The mental strength and skill of Liverpool’s substitute players gave them a slight lead in the first game of the Carabao Cup semi-final, but both teams are aware that the match is far from decided.
Willian scored the opening goal for Fulham in the semi-final, but like their previous meeting in the Premier League last month, the resilient visitors were unable to maintain their lead against a relentless Liverpool attack. In their previous encounter, Klopp’s team overcame a 3-2 deficit in the 87th minute to take a 4-3 lead by the 88th minute. While their latest comeback was not as dramatic, two quick goals from Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo once again turned the tide in Liverpool’s favor.
Gakpo’s winner was the 15th goal scored by a Liverpool substitute this season. Darwin Núñez also had a major impact off the bench and would have put the semi-final beyond Fulham but for three fine saves from Bernd Leno in the closing stages.
According to the manager of Liverpool, in order to change the course of a game, a team must possess both skill and confidence, along with a strong mindset. The outcome of the match is still uncertain, despite tonight’s performance. The manager did not anticipate a clear victory that would guarantee a spot in the Wembley finals. The opposing team, led by Marco, presented challenges for Liverpool, but Liverpool plans to reciprocate and improve their performance from the beginning of the match.
Fulham had been defeated in all five previous League Cup matches against Liverpool, but they entered the semi-finals with confidence and quickly took the lead with a strong attack. The goal was a result of an uncommon mistake by Virgil van Dijk, who had missed the FA Cup match against Arsenal due to sickness and was disappointed upon his return.
At the beginning, the visitors faced consistent pressure as Liverpool controlled the ball. Jones and Diogo Jota both posed a threat to Leno’s goal. Despite Conor Bradley adjusting well to the right-back position in the absence of Trent Alexander-Arnold, and even playing freely in a midfield role at times, it seemed like Fulham was in for a difficult and lengthy evening. However, this was not the case.
Liverpool’s control and composure evaporated when Fulham edged in front. The breakthrough started with a Joe Gomez throw-in that was headed back towards the Liverpool penalty area. Van Dijk, attempting to clear under pressure from Raúl Jiménez, miscued a weak header into the path of Andreas Pereira who advanced into the box and pulled the ball back for Willian. The 35-year-old Brazilian stumbled over a prostrate Bradley but was able to keep his balance long enough to drill a powerful shot inside Caoimhín Kelleher’s near post.
After a short while, the captain of Liverpool was given a penalty for accidentally hitting Pereira’s face with his elbow while they were both trying to get the ball. The use of VAR was not available to review the incident and potentially make it seem more severe. This is because the technology has been excluded from all the semi-final matches due to the participation of a Championship team, Middlesbrough. This is a small relief.
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The first half of Liverpool’s performance declined after Willian’s goal. They made mistakes without pressure and lost possession easily. As usual, Klopp’s pep talk during half-time led to a significant improvement. The team attacked with more energy and determination in the second half. Fulham, who had been confident in the first half, were now under attack and had chances to counterattack against Liverpool.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid missed three opportunities to score, as he was stopped by a great tackle from Gomez, unable to make a connection with a pass from Willian, and shooting at Kelleher when Pereira had a better position to score.
Silva stated that De Cordova-Reid’s inability to pass to Pereira was a crucial moment. However, the team responded well afterwards and posed a threat on the counterattack. Unfortunately, Bobby did not see Pereira, who could have had a one-on-one opportunity with the goalkeeper. Silva acknowledged Liverpool’s ability to exploit opponents in various ways and acknowledged the challenge ahead, but also expressed determination to strive for a positive outcome at Craven Cottage.
Fulham received two punishments in rapid succession. Liverpool equalized with some luck when Jota successfully won two challenges and then passed to Núñez. The striker assisted Jones in a shot from 20 yards that deflected off Tosin Adarabioyo’s back and went over the stranded Leno. Jota and Núñez also played a significant role in Liverpool’s second goal. Jota passed to Núñez who ran down the left and sent a low cross for Gakpo to score a fantastic goal at the near post. The game is now evenly matched.
Source: theguardian.com
