Liverpool would be reluctant to take a break from their stellar start to the league season, but they have relegated Leicester City coming to Anfield in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday and they want to go as far as possible.
After being demoted from the Premier League last season, Leicester has shown why they are a talented team by starting their existence in the Championship with seven wins and one loss, putting them at the top of the standings in England’s second tier tournament.
Former Reds Danny Ward and Conor Coady are currently signed with the Foxes, so there will be plenty of familiar faces at Anfield tomorrow. The squad still features a number of players with Premier League talent and experiences, as the club avoided any major clearout over the summer. However, the team’s top scorer so far this season is homegrown talent and loan returnee Kasey McAteer.
The Reds have played Leicester three times in the League Cup, and on the two occasions they came out on top, they went on to win the tournament. The most recent of these victories came in 2022.
Lineup Expected for Liverpool (4-3-3)
Kelleher; End, Gravenberch, Elliott; Gakpo, Jota, Doak; Gomez, Matip, Quansah, Tsimikas
Liverpool’s abundance of talent and current squad health means we are unlikely to see many 17-year-olds making their debuts or squad numbers in the mid 80s for once, even if it is realistic to anticipate considerable squad rotation in the domestic tournaments.
Trent alexander-Arnold will continue his rehabilitation in the back in the hopes that he will be fit to play against Tottenham this weekend, therefore Joe Gomez is set to start again at right back and might even be named captain. Joel Matip and Jarrell Quansah will likely start in the middle, with Kostas Tsimikas (who just got a contract extension) on the opposite side.
Since Thiago hasn’t yet returned to full team training, he will be rested in favor of Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch in the middle of the field, with Harvey Elliott providing the offensive punch. This will allow Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai to get some much-needed rest. Also in contention for the starting role is Stefan Bajcetic.
Ben Doak will stretch the pitch on the right side, trying to feed his striking partners in the center, while Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo will start up top for the second time in a month.
Comments from Upper Management
The whole team, according to Pep Lijnders, “needs to get game time. Jota told me that staying in the League Cup so that all the players could get regular playing time was the finest thing that happened when we went for the four trophies, and I have to agree. They keep eating because they always have another game to look forward to.
Although they have some new players, Enzo Maresca believes they are still the finest team in the world because of their transition and effort off the ball during the last seven years. So now, even with fresh players, all that’s needed is some time to adjust before they’re ready to begin again. We’re looking forward to playing at Anfield.
