Liverpool’s team has been confirmed for this evening’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Fulham. Jürgen Klopp has made four changes to his side as they look to book their place at Wembley at Craven Cottage.
The Reds have a 2-1 lead to defend against Marco Silva’s side tonight as they look to join Chelsea in the final. Mauricio Pochettino’s side hammered Middlesbrough on Tuesday to become the first finalist.
At Anfield, Willian opened the scoring before Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo turned the game on its head inside a few minutes. And with Fulham playing in its biggest match in years, this will be a difficult test.
Klopp has made a big call in his defense for tonight’s game, with Jarell Quansah returning to the side for perhaps his biggest game yet. The 20-year-old replaces Ibrahima Konaté after Sunday’s win over Bournemouth.
Meanwhile, Cody Gakpo is back in the side as he replaces Diogo Jota in the front three. Ryan Gravenberch starts in place of Curtis Jones, while Caoimhín Kelleher takes his usual spot in the cup.
Andy Robertson provides a big boost for Klopp as he makes his return to the matchday squad. The Scotland international will be aiming to make his first Liverpool appearance since the 2-2 draw at Brighton in October from the bench.
Confirmed Liverpool team vs Fulham: Kelleher; Bradley, Quansah, Van Dijk, Gomez; Elliott, Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Díaz, Núñez, Gakpo.
Ahead of tonight’s game, two of our Liverpool.com writers had their say on who they thought should get the nod. Take a look at their teams below, and see how they stack up against Klopp’s.
Seven out of my starting XI is really simple. I’d like the two center-backs to retain their places and then be rested against Norwich at the weekend and the goalkeeper and full-backs pick themselves. It would be nice to Robertson for 20 minutes but he almost definitely won’t start straight away.
Jones and Alexis Mac Allister should start in midfield but then it gets tricky. At least three from Gakpo, Diogo Jota, Luis Díaz and Darwin Núñez should play and if it is three from four then there is another midfield space.
There is a chance of it being Ryan Gravenberch but I’d rather see him on Sunday so I’ll go with Harvey Elliott again. Gakpo comes in having not started at Bournemouth and it could be any of the other three that drop out to accommodate the Dutchman.
The closer Klopp gets to the final, the greater the temptation must be to turn to Alisson. But he has kept faith with Kelleher all the way in the past, and is likely to do so again.
In defense, I’d take the slightly risky decision of bringing in Jarell Quansah. But he has proven this season that the gamble is a minimal one — and I’m semi-permanently worried about a Konaté injury, given his history. He can take a break here.
Mac Allister showed his quality once again in the deepest midfield role against Bournemouth, and will retain it (not that there are many other options available). Jones is a key player at the moment, and Elliott didn’t do enough last time to keep a spot ahead of Gravenberch, who will want to improve on his first-leg performance.
Up top, I see no reason to change the winning formula Klopp hit upon against Bournemouth, with Gakpo on the left, Núñez through the middle and Jota on the right, in place of Salah. Díaz has shown some green shoots of form lately, but it’s a competitive front line, and he is the casualty.
