Carabao Cup
Klopp laments absence of VAR as Reds lose League Cup thriller at City
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has slammed the lack of the VAR (video assistant referee) technology as Manchester City beat his League Cup holders 3-2 in a cracking game on Thursday, taking the lead three times before holding on to reach the quarter-finals.
Defender Nathan Ake headed in what proved to be the winning goal in the 58th minute after Mohamed Salah had equalised one minute after Riyad Mahrez restored City’s advantage early in the second half.
Erling Haaland scored his 24th goal of the season in all competitions to put City ahead in the 10th minute at the Etihad Stadium but Liverpool responded in the 20th, when Fabio Carvalho knocked in a James Milner pass to complete a flowing move.
Klopp thought Haaland’s goal was offside and lamented the fact that VAR is not used in the League Cup until the semi-final stage.
“We have VAR, the referees are used to VAR. The technology is here, why shouldn’t we use it?” he said.
“We had VAR, and all of a sudden you tell them not today. It looked like in a couple of situations they were waiting for it, or thinking there was still VAR.
“There were a couple of offside decisions, where everyone in the stadium was convinced they were offside. We’ll never know probably because we can’t play them back.”
On the game: he added: “We worked hard, we did good stuff. It was not good enough for tonight but it’s City at their home ground, it will always be an incredibly difficult game.”
It was another fast and furious game between the two rivals who took the Premier League title race to a dramatic conclusion last season and once again it was City who finished on top.
City boss Guardiola and Klopp named strong sides in their first game back since the domestic season paused for the World Cup.
The hosts started six players who featured in Qatar, although striker Julian Alvarez was absent as he remained in Argentina celebrating his country’s triumph.
Haaland looked refreshed from his extended break due to Norway’s failure to qualify and in addition to being ruthless in front of goal he heavily contributed to his team’s build-up play, setting up a great chance for Cole Palmer but the youngster sliced his shot well wide.
He had no such problem when presented with his first clear chance, stretching out his left leg to send Kevin de Bruyne’s cross into the net.
City’s defence switched off and allowed Liverpool to pass their way around their area and equalise through Carvalho.
Guardiola’s side looked more likely to score again and did so soon after the interval, Mahrez controlling a through ball from Rodri with one foot and slamming it low into the net with the other.
As has often been the case in the recent years of the fixture, though, Liverpool came straight back and Darwin Nunez made a lung-bursting run down the left wing to latch on to a pass and sent it across for Salah to tap in.
City would not be outdone, however, and took the lead for the final time, Ake rising high to head home an inviting cross from De Bruyne.
Guardiola, who enjoyed a first win over Liverpool in six matches in all competitions, was pleased with his side’s performance.
“We cannot say it was not a good game,” he said. “It’s not easy to keep the ball against Liverpool because they have a defensive structure that is the most difficult I ever faced in my career.
“After the World Cup and a long time without playing, both teams played at an incredibly high level of intensity. Liverpool are so difficult, when they play good, they can destroy you.
“It was a good game and an entertaining game.”
City will travel to Southampton in the quarter-finals and Manchester United were handed a home tie against third-tier Charlton Athletic in the draw on Thursday.
Nottingham Forest will host Wolverhampton Wanderers and Newcastle United will entertain Leicester City.
–Reuters
Carabao Cup
Manchester United put seven goals past Barnsley to progress in League Cup
Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Christian Eriksen all scored twice as the Old Trafford side roared into the last 16 of the League Cup with a 7-0 rout of third-tier Barnsley on Tuesday.
United were joined in the fourth round by fellow Premier League sides Brentford, who beat third-tier Leyton Orient 3-1, and Crystal Palace after they edged Queen’s Park Rangers 2-1.
Top flight Fulham were knocked out in extraordinary fashion by second-tier Preston North End after the match ended 1-1 — the home side prevailing 16-15 in a 34-penalty shootout, the longest-ever in the competition.
United manager Erik Ten Hag has endured a rocky time since taking over in 2022 but enjoyed the biggest win of his reign.
England forward Rashford ended a six-month goal drought at the weekend when he scored against Southampton in the Premier League and needed only 16 minutes to strike against Barnsley.
His silky finish high into the net paved the way for United to demolish Barnsley who were no match for Ten Hag’s side.
Antony added the second from the penalty spot in the 35th minute and Garnacho poked home United’s third in first-half stoppage time to put the hosts in complete control.
Garnacho side-footed his second from Rashford’s pass just after the restart and returned the compliment as Rashford made it 5-0. Eriksen scored his first United goal for more than a year in the 81st minute, slotting in Bruno Fernandes’s cross.
Eriksen then fired in from the edge of the area to complete United’s biggest-ever League Cup win and their biggest margin of victory since Ten Hag took charge in 2022.
United’s previous biggest wins under the Dutchman were 4-1 defeats of Real Betis and Chelsea.
“Football is football. Sometimes you have ups and sometimes downs, but we have to use these games to get momentum and consistency,” Rashford said.
Ten Hag added: “I thought the first goal from Marcus was really good, but so were the rest. We played with a lot of speed and were ruthless in front of goal. The key was the right attitude and to be 100% concentrated.”
BASEMENT BATTLE
The Premier League’s bottom two clubs met at Goodison Park and there was more woe for Everton as they bowed out on penalties to Southampton after a 1-1 draw.
Abdoulaye Doucoure put Everton ahead but Southampton levelled through Taylor Harwood-Bellis and the visitors won 6-5 in the shootout. Eleven penalties hit the net before Ashley Young saw his effort saved by Alex McCarthy.
Brentford were given an early scare when Brandon Cooper put Orient in front but Fabio Carvalho equalised in acrobatic fashion. Mikel Damsgaard headed Brentford in front and Christian Norgaard ensured progress for Thomas Frank’s team.
Eddie Nketiah scored his first goal for Crystal Palace since moving from Arsenal and Eberechi Eze struck the winner against his old club Queen’s Park Rangers to send the visitors through.
Sheffield Wednesday won 1-0 at Blackpool, while Championship (second-tier) side Stoke City needed penalties to get past fourth-tier Fleetwood Town 2-1 after being held to a 1-1 draw.
The remaining third round ties will be played on Wednesday and next week, concluding with holders Liverpool at home fellow Premier League side West Ham United on Sept. 25.
-Reuters
Carabao Cup
Liverpool Claim League Cup With 1-0 Extra-time Victory Over Chelsea –
Liverpool won the League Cup by beating Chelsea 1-0 through a late extra-time goal from captain Virgil van Dijk after a fierce end-to-end battle at Wembley on Sunday.
Dutchman Van Dijk rose to meet a corner in the 118th minute and nodded home in front of cheering Liverpool fans.
The two teams had numerous chances in the first 90 minutes.
Both sides had goals ruled out after long VAR checks, with Raheem Sterling’s first-half effort for Chelsea cancelled out because Nicolas Jackson was offside in the build-up while Van Dijk’s second-half header was disallowed for an infringement by Wataru Endo.
Both teams also hit the post, Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo in the first half and Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher in the second.
It was the third Cup victory for Juergen Klopp’s Liverpool over Chelsea in two years, the Reds winning the League and FA Cups in 2022 after goalless draws and penalty shootouts.
-Reuters
Carabao Cup
League Cup Trophy A Part Of Final Chapter With Liverpool, Says Klopp –
Winning the League Cup would be a crucial addition to the final segment of a memoir with Liverpool, the soon-to-depart manager Juergen Klopp said before his side’s final match against Chelsea.
Klopp has announced his decision to step down as Liverpool manager at the end of the season, citing dwindling energy levels.
The 56-year-old, who is the only Liverpool manager to win six different major trophies, would dedicate the victory to everyone connected to the Merseyside club as part of his trophy-laden nine-year epoch.
“I want to win on Sunday but not for me or my trophy cabinet,” Klopp said of the League Cup final. “It is for the boys, for the club, for the people. That is much more important.
“We wrote, and we are still writing, a wonderful book, and when I leave we close that book and put it on the shelf and then someone else will write a wonderful book.
“Yes, there is space for some chapters. It is long. I am not there and writing the resume already? Not at all. I am 100% in trying to create a few special memories on top of what we have done.”
Klopp’s side have a lengthy injury list that could hinder their chances of securing a record-extending 10th League Cup triumph at Wembley, with the likes of Diogo Jota, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alisson and Curtis Jones sidelined and forwards Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez and midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai doubtful for Sunday.
Liverpool’s most recent triumph came in the 2021-22 campaign when they also lifted the FA Cup, and narrowly missed securing a treble as they finished second in the Premier League.
-Reuters
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