Three talking points as Liverpool thrash Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup semifinals

Liverpool can do no wrong in the ongoing season as they now are again back in the race to do a quadruple after missing out in the last season. They are now in the Premier League as title contenders, topped the UEFA Champions League table, FA Cup (4th Round), and Carabao Cup finals. While they lagged in the first leg with 1-0, in the second leg, they came back strong with a 4-0 win. While the final score read 4-1, here are the three talking points from the game where Liverpool went on about their Carabao Cup title defense. 

Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur Carabao Cup Semi-final: Three talking points

1. Liverpool sails through Tottenham's defense without Trent Alexander Arnold 

Liverpool came into the fixture in a bid to retain their Carabao Cup title while Tottenham Hotspur came with a hope to go through to the finals. If they had hopes of winning, that was due to the absence of Trent Alexander Arnold, who is out injured. He was duly replaced by Conor Bradley, an emerging star in the Liverpool defense. 

Arne Slot rotated his squad from their last Premier League fixture to keep the fresh legs for the upcoming FA Cup fixture against Plymouth Argyle. Despite that, the team was too hot to handle for the Lillywhites. Conor Bradley, who replaced Trent Alexander Arnold, did not hold back himself in the game. He was too strong as he won 8 out of 10 duels while showing promise going forward. He assisted Szoboszlai in the game to have a five-star performance. 

In the attacking front, barring Darwin Nunez, everybody scored the goal. Salah, Szobozlai, and Cody Gakpo found the back of the net in the two half of the game. The midfield was solid and too difficult to thread through for Spurs. Despite fielding a strong XI amidst injuries, Ange Postecoglu’s men had no response to Liverpool’s dominating performance. 

2. Dominik Szoboszlai runs the midfield show

For years together, Liverpool missed out on the services of Philippe Coutinho despite them assembling a stronger squad. They signed Thiago from Bayern Munich but it did not yield results as the player was injury-stricken most times. However, the signing of Dominik Szoboszlai has helped them not only create more chances but also regain control in the midfield. The player is strong on and off the ball, creating trouble for the opposition.

In the game against Tottenham Hotspur, Dominik Szoboszlai was a beast in the midfield. Not only he defended well but also made marauding runs to give the opposition a headache that they didn't want to have. He had five shots in the game with two on target. Of the two, he successfully drew a save from the goalkeeper whereas the other one found the back of the net. He also had five key passes per 90, which helped the side build up to the goal. He has 67 passes in the 90. With a pass success percentage of 90, Szoboszlai bossed the midfield for Liverpool. 

3) Arne closer to the trophy promise compared to Ange 

In the ongoing season, earlier, Ange Postecoglu had mentioned after the 1-0 defeat to Arsenal that he will win something in the second year. 

I always win things in my second year

I'll correct myself - I don't usually win things, I always win things in my second year. Nothing's changed

However, the dream looks distant as they are out of the Carabao Cup after reaching the semifinals. With Newcastle United having reached the finals, Tottenham Hotspur would not have imagined a better opponent than the Magpies to play in the final.

However, Liverpool and Arne Slot were a difficult side in the Carabao Cup too. Slot devised his usual 4-2-3-1 to counter Ange Postecoglu’s Highline and fast 4-3-3 formation. Ange was caught off guard at the hour mark for the first time when Gakpo found the back of the net and equalized at an aggregate level. Later on, it was downhill for Ange’s men in the second half.

Despite bringing on their new loan signing, Mathys Tel in the second half, the Spurs fell short of registering a goal, let alone winning the game. Arne Slot tactically outclassed Ange with his substitutions when he brought on Diogo Jota and Alexis McAllister when they had a slender advantage of one goal instead of going to shell. 

What next for Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur? 

Before heading to the Premier League duties, Liverpool will play Plymouth Argyle in the fourth round of the FA Cup whereas Tottenham Hotspur will be up against Aston Villa on Saturday in a bid to survive the onslaught of the campaign.