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Liverpool earned a hard-fought victory against Leicester City in the EFL Cup quarter-final on Wednesday, staging a stunning comeback from two goals down to win 5-4 on penalties
Keeping the congested Premier League calendar in mind, Klopp made a plethora of changes to Liverpool’s starting XI. The makeshift team gave Leicester an opportunity to get a foothold in the match. Jamie Vardy netted two early goals in the first 13 minutes of the game to put Leicester City firmly in control of the game.
Former Arsenal star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made full use of his rare starting XI appearance and pulled a goal back for the Reds. Leicester City struck again through James Maddison just past the hour-mark, restoring their two-goal cushion.
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The hosts kept on knocking on Leicester’s door, but the equalizer did not come in the first 45. In the 68th minute, Diogo Jota came to Liverpool’s rescue, cutting the deficit in half before Takumi Minamino scored a dramatic equalizer in injury time. The match finished 3-3 in regular time, forcing the two teams to take part in a nerve-wracking penalty shootout.
James Milner, Roberto Firmino, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita dispatched successful penalties. Unfortunately, Minamino failed to capitalize on Luke Thomas’ miss. Ryan Bertrand then missed Leicester’s sixth spot-kick, allowing Jota to win the game for the Anfield outfit.
It was a mixed bag for Liverpool on Wednesday night as some players lived up to their billing, while others scuffed their chances.
Here are three standout performers and two underperformers from Liverpool’s win over Leicester City in the EFL Cup:
Performed: Ibrahima Konate
Liverpool centre-back Ibrahima Konate has made quite a name for himself over the last couple of months. Last night, he cemented his place as one of the brightest prospects at Liverpool.
Konate did not get the opportunity to start the game for Liverpool last night and was subbed in for Billy Koumetio in the second half.
He immediately calmed the Liverpool defense down with his risk-free distribution and helped neutralize Jamie Vardy.
Underperformed: Tyler Morton
Last weekend, Tyler Morton was one of Liverpool’s most ordinary players in the 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. He looked nervous more often than not and did not make anything notable happen.
Against Leicester, Morton failed to improve upon his last weekend’s display and looked just as subdued.
He picked up a yellow card just after 10 minutes and spent the next 35 minutes pulling his punches. Having failed to convince Klopp, Morton was taken off at half-time, with James Milner replacing him.
Performed: Diogo Jota
Last night Jurgen Klopp gave Roberto Firmino the opportunity to make a tangible impact for Liverpool, starting the Brazilian ahead of Diogo Jota. Firmino did his job well, but failed to find the back of the net.
Jota, on the other hand, came off the bench for Conor Bradley at half-time and ended up scoring an important goal for the Reds.
Unlike Firmino, Jota was not all over the pitch for Liverpool and his decisiveness once again shone through. He slid into little pockets of space, always looking for a slip-up or an opportunity to exploit the Leicester back-line.
The chance finally came in the 68th minute, when Minamino played Jota through on goal. The Portugal international happily pulled the trigger, firing across goal and beating a stretched Kasper Schmeichel with ease.
To top it off, Jota had the responsibility of taking Liverpool’s sixth and decisive spot-kick. He went for the bottom-left corner and beat Schmeichel for pace, winning the game for the Reds.
Underperformed: Joe Gomez
Joe Gomez got the nod to lead Liverpool’s inexperienced defense against a spirited Leicester side on Wednesday night. Despite being the most experienced Liverpool defender on the pitch, Gomez lacked the authority to manage the back line.
As a result, Liverpool were exploited time and again and were lucky to progress to the semi-finals.
A loose pass from Gomez led to a Leicester interception and then a shot in the fifth minute. Fortunately for the England international, the angle was too tight for Patson Daka to dispatch a convincing shot at the Liverpool goal.
Gomez was lucky once again in the 38th minute when he gave the ball away to Jamie Vardy. The veteran striker chipped the ball over the on-rushing keeper, but unluckily hit the inside of the post.
Gomez did not repeat such blunders in the second half, but his performance was far from redeeming.
Performed: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Last night, Oxlade-Chamberlain once again proved his mettle for Liverpool, showing what he can bring to the table. The England international was a non-stop pressing machine for the Reds and rarely put a foot wrong.
He was also the most vocal Liverpool player on the pitch, always encouraging the younglings to do better.
Oxlade-Chamberlain also served as Liverpool’s beacon of hope in the first half and scored the opening goal in style. In the 19th minute, the midfielder got the ball on the edge of the box and arrowed it into the bottom corner. His sweetly-struck ball gave Schmeichel no chance whatsoever.
He had a couple more chances in the second half but failed to keep them on target. Oxlade-Chamberlain capped off his night by converting Liverpool’s third spot-kick.
