City
had
already
eliminated
Chelsea
in
the
previous
round,
while
Arsenal
and
Tottenham
also
fell
by
the
wayside,
creating
a
clearer
path
for
those
with
genuine
aspirations
of
silverware.
However,
as
top-six
rivals
Newcastle
United
and
Manchester
United
were
handed
relatively
kind
home
draws
against
Bournemouth
and
Burnley
respectively,
the
two
most
recent
EFL
Cup
winners
were
pitted
against
one
another.
City
made
seven
changes
from
their
previous
Premier
League
match
for
that
Chelsea
tie,
with
Jurgen
Klopp
swapping
his
entire
starting
line-up
prior
to
scraping
past
Derby
County
on
penalties.
Even
with
players
still
returning
from
Qatar,
both
Pep
Guardiola
and
Klopp
must
know
the
risk
of
altering
their
teams
again
for
this
clash
if
they
are
to
maintain
hopes
of
celebrating
at
the
end
of
February.
City
had
won
the
EFL
Cup
four
seasons
in
a
row
prior
to
last
season,
tying
Liverpool’s
then
record
eight
titles,
only
for
the
Reds
to
respond
by
taking
the
trophy
last
term.
This
has
proven
to
be
a
competition
that
can
provide
a
timely
boost
as
the
final
comes
shortly
before
the
return
of
European
action
in
the
English
spring.
While
City
are
again
in
contention
for
a
quadruple
Liverpool
only
narrowly
missed
out
on
last
season,
Klopp’s
men
appear
set
to
fall
some
way
short
in
the
Premier
League
and
face
Real
Madrid
in
the
Champions
League.
They
should
not
be
passing
up
opportunities
to
add
silverware
in
a
hurry.
The
same
youthful
line-up
that
just
about
got
the
better
of
Derby
would
surely
be
punished
by
City’s
superstars,
perhaps
including
the
well-rested
Erling
Haaland.
That
Derby
tie
saw
a
record
15th
EFL
Cup
shoot-out
success
for
Liverpool,
who
defeated
Chelsea
in
last
season’s
final
by
the
same
method
–
both
after
goalless
draws
as
the
Reds
have
kept
four
clean
sheets
in
a
row
in
the
competition.
As
City
look
to
avoid
missing
out
on
the
quarter-finals
in
consecutive
seasons
for
the
first
time
since
2006-07,
having
lost
to
West
Ham
at
this
stage
last
term,
this
clash
should
be
similarly
close.
Yet
another
shoot-out
would
recall
fond
memories
for
City,
with
their
last
EFL
Cup
meeting
against
Liverpool
coming
in
the
final
six
years
ago.
The
sides
could
not
be
separated
in
a
1-1
draw,
but
Manuel
Pellegrini’s
men
won
3-1
from
the
spot.
That
was
one
of
three
draws
between
the
two
in
this
competition,
with
Liverpool
winning
a
further
three
encounters
outright.
Only
once,
in
the
third
round
in
the
1969-70
season,
have
City
beaten
the
Reds
in
90
minutes.
They
went
on
to
win
the
trophy
for
the
first
time
in
that
season.
The
last
time
City
faced
the
holders
in
the
EFL
Cup
was
back
in
the
2011-12
campaign,
when
they
dumped
out
Birmingham
City
but
were
then
themselves
eliminated
in
the
semi-finals
–
by
eventual
winners
Liverpool.
Liverpool
have
faced
City
as
holders
once
and
thrashed
them
4-0
in
1995.
A
repeat
at
the
Etihad
Stadium
seems
highly
unlikely,
with
Liverpool
winning
just
one
of
their
past
seven
away
matches
against
City
in
all
competitions,
albeit
that
was
in
a
knockout
scenario
as
a
2-1
success
knocked
Guardiola’s
side
out
of
the
2017-18
Champions
League.
“It’s
never
a
boring
game
against
them,”
said
Liverpool
assistant
Pep
Lijnders.
“Both
teams
will
put
on
a
top
show.
“We
know
against
them
that
we
have
to
be
100
per
cent
concentrated
on
the
things
we
have
to
do,
we
need
to
be
difficult
to
play
against,
be
quick
and
efficient
in
the
moments
we
have
the
ball.
“It’s
a
strange
situation
coming
back
from
a
World
Cup
and
having
this
fixture
straight
away.
The
teams
have
proved
in
the
past
that
whoever
makes
it
on
the
pitch
will
make
it
a
top
show.”
The
outcome
of
that
top
show
could
set
the
tone
for
the
second
half
of
the
season
for
both
of
these
sides.
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Football News Click Here
