Key events
43 minutes: Quansah Gakpo tries to cross the left with an ambitious crossfield pass, but it goes over. The ball disappears in the back of the stand.
42 min: This is better from the Saints, although Fernandes bursts into the left slide, touches the ball, and sends it into the net. Bree tries to unite the people, but only succeeds in running a slap-bang on Gomez. Kelleher carried the cross from danger.
40 minutes: Liverpool great confidence surrounding him. Trying to keep any possessions of the saints. Dibling tries his best to get something straight, but Endo and Gomez make meander out of the game.
38 minutes: Morton leans left and gains a corner. Mac Allister headed for Nunez near the station. Nunez tries to head back but it doesn’t come. To clear the lines of the Saints.
36 minutes: Alexander-Arnold Mac Allister on the edge of the Saints Mr. Mac Allister lightly picks up the pass from the right and hits his first pass, opening the body and to the bottom of the right side. It’s heading in, so McCarthy does well to turn it around the post. Nothing happens as a result of the angle.
34 min: Elliott’s shot took some of Manning’s gear as it eluded a sprawling McCarthy and crawled into the corner. The ending was somewhat happy, but the move, instigated by Gakpo, was delightful.
THE END! Southampton 0-2 Liverpool (Elliott 32)
Elliott did not have long to wait for another chance. Some are lovely Liverpool passing Gakpo comes in from the left and joins Morton before rising to Elliott, who whips a low shot into the bottom left corner.
31 minutes: Nyoni rolls delicately down the inside left channel to Gakpo, who enters the box and shoots, but allows the ball to snag between his legs. A low cross resulting in Elliott is not good, and perhaps great Liverpool as at least McCarthy’s experiment went.
30 minutes: Liverpool fans are loud to take control of their team to finish the game, searching for another. In the meantime, here’s Richard Hirst: “I’m a number on the game and Martin Russell about (however) they’ve been playing for Fulham. Southampton but in the author, I wish he were still in place). Mentally it’s simple: to play it = to own Liverpool 20 yards from the goals, the outcome of misery; hooves from which it is clear = you have Liverpool borts 5 from the goal, the result of the delay of misery. So it all depends on whether you like immediate pain or premonitory pain.
28 minutes: That end came at an unfortunate time Southamptonthose who stand more slowly in the struggle. But now you’re on the back foot again, perhaps remembering that he scored goals in batches against Spurs on Sunday evening.
26 minutes: That’s from Bednarek’s anointing of the beast. But he had to try something, because the Alexander-Arnold pass was to release Nunez anyway. Alexander-Arnold also twists the sublime to walk along the road Southampton press And Nunez’s performance is also calm, which is not always his MO.
THE END! Southampton 0-1 Liverpool (Nunez 24)
Alexander-Arnold elegantly sashays his way out of the Saints butler’s move and pings the long half. Bednarek should make an interception, but the ball is split back, allowing Nunez to run up the middle. It takes a careful touch to pull the ball down and slots across McCarthy and into the bottom right.
22 minutes; The Saints are slowly making their way into this game. Powers with little control in the middle of the park.
20 minutes: Fernandes Dibling slides into space down the inside right channel. The Saints star enters the box, opens his body, and … hits a weak shot straight at Kelleher, who will be glad of the practice of handling in these wild conditions. Perhaps for a decent host.
19 minutes: Nyoni snaffles possession in midfield, and Nunez runs down the inside left channel. He enters the box and figures to shoot only to be denied by Bednarek’s watercraft. It was said to be very untimely.
17 minutes: McCarthy is another hoof. The fashion is applauded from all sides. But Liverpool to immediately recover possession. Russell Martin’s argument, right there. On the other hand, Saints are 3-0 down this past weekend, two sides to this one.
15 minutes: Nunez, on the edge of the Saints D, looks to the top right corner of the goal. He is found standing in the upper right wing. Liverpool wanting to take a free kick, Mac Allister was prevented from running into the box by a wooden block. But he’s not getting it.
14 minutes: Gakpo shimmies from the left and sees Mac Allister in space just inside the box. Cross t Cross not a point. The goal is to kick out. The Saints go up to the top end, where Sagittarius and Fernandes make themselves a nuisance in their ends Liverpool box Quansah with danger.
12 minutes: The Liverpool McCarthy insisted on the former. The guard whacks it clear, safety first. The house is cheered by the Internet. Ironically not all, I should.
11 minutes: Mac Allister hit the corner over everyone’s head. Put each piece on the sad, then.
10 minutes: Gakpo breaks down the left and wins the first corner of the evening off Bree. Mac Allister trots across to take it.
8 minutes: Harwood-Bells shaves a thin long to the stream straight inside low to roe to the rabbit behind. Bree is clear about it Liverpool Towards the back, but the break is gone too early, and the flag quickly pops up for offside. It was close, but there was no VAR, the officials were not as quick and decisive as they usually play in the Premier League.
7 minutes: Liverpool dominate in their first possession. For some relief Southampton as Alexander-Arnold raiders to cross a long cross to shoot.
5 minutes: Rain is now down on the cards. A good evening for a slippery transition, if nothing else. Nyoni curls in a cross on the left but it’s headed clear by Harwood-Bells.
3 minutes: Nyoni has a few hits as the game tries to get something left down. A young colonist’s nerves starting in his prime, if nothing else.
1 minute: A long ball was pumped to the left side. Quansah boats the archers to land near the corner flag. From the first case Southampton trying to get Liverpool’s defense to stand out… but Manning’s inexplicable free-kick is over everyone’s head and it’s an easy sweep job for the visitors.
Southampton will get the ball rolling. The rain is almost horizontal. Arne Slot, serving a touch ban on the night when he picked up a third yellow card of the season against Fulham, can be lucky to be safe and comfortable standing on the opposite side.
The parties are out! Southampton in red and white, Liverpool in black with aqua trim. Alex McCarthy and Trent Alexander-Arnold are the captains tonight. The way down is usually wet and windy. You won’t be there in two minutes.
Liverpool boss Arne Slote talks to Sky. “The players who have not been with us for many, many, many minutes … the players who have played a lot of minutes are not playing the whole game today … those who have not played a lot, it is an ideal moment to play them 90 … it is easier [Tyler Morton and Trey Nyoni] if they can enter with ten other starters, because the connection with the team is perfect … now a few different players … they know what they can do, but the strong will come Southampton the team … we knew how difficult it would be two or three weeks ago when we played our starters … it’s going to be a competition but in the quarter final you expect a challenge.
Meanwhile, Saints manager Simon Rusk is speaking to Sky Sports. “Definitely a quick turnaround from Sunday … a little time to organize on the field … to know the guys … we are confident where we need to … the best we can … we are waiting … There have been games that have been good, so we try to keep that … but of course we want to hit hard … so that we have solidity to our game … if the balance is right we will have enough problems … it’s a great competition … It is an opportunity for us to put it as a catalyst for the season. “
Here is a reminder of exactly what happened with these two teams clubs meet a month …
… and here’s how things went down the last time they met in the League Cup, back in the 2017 semis. Features an indignant 54th-minute Fraser Forster save from, er, Fraser Forster.
The Saints make three changes in the offensive spurts. James Bree, Nathan Wood and Cameron Archer are in, replacing the absent trio of Kyle Walker-Peters, Kamldeen Sulemana and Adam Armstrong.
Liverpool make eight changes after being drawn by Fulham. In came Caoimhín Kelleher, Wataru Endo, Jarell Quansah, Tyler Morton, Alexis Mac Allister, Harvey Elliott, Darwin Núñez and, making his first start for the club, exciting 17-year-old midfield prospect Trey Nyoni. Substitutes Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Andreas Robertson, Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones, Ryan Gravenberch, Luis Díaz and Mohamed Sala, who all stayed at home.
Parts
Southampton: McCarthy, Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Wood, Bree, Downes, Fernandes, Aribo, Manning, Dibling, Archer.
Subs: Lumley, Edwards, Sugawara, Lallana, Fraser, Amo-Ameyaw, Onuachu, Sulemana, Brereton Diaz.
Liverpool: Kelleher, Quansah, Gomez, Endo, Alexander-Arnold, Morton, McAllister, Nyoni, Elliott, Gakpo, Nunez.
Subs: Jaros, Chiesa, Jota, Tsimikas, McConnell, Nallo, Norris, Danns, Ngumoha.
Referee: Simon Hooper (Wiltshire).
The beginning
It’s hard to know what to expect tonight. Southampton they come against the Spurs with the back of a special shoe, and have robbed their manager; high-flying Liverpool dropped valuable Premier League points at home to Fulham at the weekend but still received plenty of praise for the ten-man’s moxie. On the other hand, Saints gave Liverpool a good run for their money here in the league last month, and the last time this fixture was played, it ended in a 4-4 draw. Throw in any number of potential League Cup changes for both sides, plus the fact that there’s a semi-final appearance on the line, and good luck predicting what’s going to happen here. Correct penalties if there is no winner at the time, remember. Kick off is at 8pm GMT. It’s in!