At Anfield, Liverpool once again made a fast comeback to defeat Fulham, causing Jürgen Klopp to feel relieved and Marco Silva to feel despair.
The mentality and skill of Liverpool’s substitutes gave them a small lead in the initial match of the Carabao Cup semi-final. However, both the winning and losing teams are aware that the tie is not yet decided.
Willian scored the opening goal for Fulham in the semi-final, but similar to their Premier League match last month, the brave visitors were unable to maintain their lead against Liverpool’s onslaught. In their previous encounter, Klopp’s team turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead within a minute. While their latest comeback was not as intense, goals from Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo quickly shifted the momentum back in Liverpool’s favor once again.
Gakpo’s winning goal marked the 15th time a substitute from Liverpool has scored this season. Darwin Núñez also made a significant contribution as a substitute and could have secured the semi-final victory for Fulham if not for three impressive saves by Bernd Leno towards the end of the match.
“To change the outcome of a game, you require skill, faith, and most importantly, a strong mindset,” stated the manager of Liverpool. “Unfortunately, the match is not yet finished. I did not anticipate a definitive result tonight that would allow us to reserve hotels for Wembley. Marco may not be pleased at this moment, but his team certainly challenged us. We will also pose difficulties for them and hopefully we will perform better from the beginning.”
Fulham had previously been defeated in all five meetings with Liverpool in the League Cup. However, they entered their first semi-final with confidence and quickly gained the lead with a successful attack. This was made possible by an uncommon mistake from Virgil van Dijk, who had been absent due to illness during the FA Cup third-round match against Arsenal and returned feeling very ill.
At the beginning of the game, Liverpool controlled the ball and put the visitors under a lot of pressure. Jones and Diogo Jota both had chances to score against Leno. Despite Trent Alexander-Arnold being injured and Conor Bradley playing in his place at right-back, Fulham seemed to be in for a difficult evening. However, things did not turn out as they appeared.
Liverpool lost their grip and calmness as Fulham took the lead. The momentum shifted when Joe Gomez threw the ball in and it was headed towards the Liverpool goal. Van Dijk, who was under pressure from Raúl Jiménez, tried to clear but ended up making a poor header that went straight to Andreas Pereira. Pereira then ran into the box and crossed the ball to Willian. The 35-year-old Brazilian stumbled over Bradley, who was lying on the ground, but managed to regain his balance and score a strong shot into the near post of Caoimhín Kelleher’s goal.
The captain of Liverpool received a yellow card shortly after for hitting Pereira in the face with his elbow while they were both going for a loose ball. Unfortunately, there was no use of VAR to review the incident and potentially make it seem more severe. VAR has been excluded from all semi-final matches due to the participation of a Championship club, Middlesbrough. This is a small relief.
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Liverpool’s performance in the first half declined after Willian’s goal. They started making mistakes and losing possession easily. As has happened before, Klopp’s halftime talk sparked a significant improvement. In the second half, the home team attacked with much more energy and determination. Fulham, who had been in control in the first half, were now under pressure and had a few chances to counterattack and score against Liverpool.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid did not take advantage of three opportunities that came his way. He was stopped by a great tackle from Gomez, missed connecting with a through ball from Willian, and shot at Kelleher instead of passing to Pereira who was in a better position.
Silva commented on De Cordova-Reid’s missed opportunity to pass to Pereira, stating that it was a crucial moment in the game. However, the team responded strongly after a slow start to the second half and posed a threat on the counterattack. Silva noted that Bobby did not see Pereira, who would have had a one-on-one opportunity with the goalkeeper. Despite facing a formidable opponent in Liverpool, Silva emphasized the team’s determination to achieve their goals at Craven Cottage.
Fulham received two consequences in rapid succession. Liverpool equalized with a stroke of luck when Jota successfully won two challenges and passed to Núñez. The forward assisted Jones in a shot from 20 yards that hit Tosin Adarabioyo and looped over the stranded Leno as the defender turned his back. Jota and Núñez also played key roles in Liverpool’s second goal. Jota sent Núñez sprinting down the left and from his low cross, Gakpo scored a fantastic finish at the near post. The game is still up for grabs.
Source: theguardian.com
