What can Arsenal expect from Liverpool?
After the latest round of matches of Carabao Cup were played out, Arsenal were drawn against Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta’s men will take on Jurgen Klopp’s men, in a feisty two-legged semi-final tie. (Or possibly a one-off game, which is possible but unlikely).
Despite being one of the best teams in England in the recent past, the Merseyside club has looked a different proposition in the EFL Cup.
This is Liverpool’s first semi-final appearance since 2017, and it is certainly a competition which hasn’t interested Jurgen Klopp much. His team hasn’t gone further than round 5.
Last season, Arsenal eliminated the 2019/20 league champions to enter the quarters of the same competition.
At that time, Liverpool only had three established first team players in Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Virgil Van Dijk featuring. All three were taken off before the full-time whistle.
Klopp has always blooded the team with rookie players. He rarely uses his senior players. In their win against Leicester last night, they only had four senior players in the team.
That was despite the fact that they were playing a tough Premier League opposition.
I highly expect Klopp to pick more senior players for their two semi-final matches against Arsenal, but I would be surprised if they are aplenty.
Arteta will himself certainly bring in more senior players. To the Gunners, the EFL cup has added meaning this term.
With the team not involved in Europe, winning a cup would be fantastic. Be it the EFL cup or the FA Cup.