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Liverpool broke into the fourth round of the Carabao Cup thanks to a resounding 7-2 victory at Lincoln City.
Jurgen Klopp made 10 changes to the team that beat Chelsea at the weekend, but it made little difference as a combination of fringe stars and talented youngsters put the League One team to the test.
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Xherdan Shaqiri rolled the ball with a sublime free kick in the 11th minute before Takumi Minamino launched another super strike into the far corner.
Curtis Jones then took center stage by entering the interval with a graceful double as the Merseysiders hosted a completion masterclass.
There was no truce after the break when Minamino volleyed in his second of the night before new signing Diogo Jota came off the bench to take his Reds bow.
Tayo Edun gave Michael Appleton’s men a break before Marko Grujic added a sixth goal with his first goal for the visitors.
Lewis Montsma headed from the crossbar to pull another one back for the Imps, but Divock Origi made sure the champions had the final word on a high-scoring affair in the last minute.
Liverpool will now host Arsenal in a double from Anfield next week, with Monday’s Premier League clash followed by a draw in the fourth round of the League Cup.
Lincoln v Liverpool scoreboard
Image Credit: Getty Images
TALKING POINT
Much to smile at Klopp as Lincoln takes a beating.. The Imps had been undefeated in five outings prior to this contest, but never seemed to challenge a second hungry group from the Reds. Michael Appleton’s players will obviously not face such high-quality opposition in League One and he hopes his team’s confidence won’t suffer too much as they immediately look to bounce back at home to Charlton on Sunday.
For Klopp, there were many positives. He has often been criticized for playing against weakened teams in national cup competitions, but the caliber of the one he presented here speaks volumes about the club’s youth development and overall recruiting in recent years.
England U19 center-back Rhys Williams and summer signing Kostas Tsimikas made an impressive debut, while Jota also posted his opening minutes in the red jersey with a second-half cameo. Minamino was a constant threat as he continues to show that he has found his place at the club after taking advantage of his excellent preseason. Indeed, it was difficult to point the finger at a Liverpool player who did not take the opportunity to impress, which is good news for Klopp given the Reds’ schedule for the next few weeks and months.
MAN OF THE PARTY
Curtis Jones (Liverpool). Another classy show from the Liverpool midfielder. Starting spots should seem even tougher to come by given the Reds’ wealth of talent in that department and the arrival of Thiago, but if he continues to churn out shows like this when asked, his coach will have to pay more attention. He scored his goals well and was composed with the ball at all times.
Virgil van Dijk | Lincoln v Liverpool
Image Credit: Getty Images
PLAYER RATINGS
Lincoln: Palmer 5, Bradley 5, Montsma 6, Eyoma 5, Melbourne 6, Bridcutt 6, Edun 6, Jones 6, Grant 6, Anderson 6, Scully 6. Subs: McGrandles 6, Hopper 6, Archibald 6.
Liverpool: Adrian 6, N Williams 7, R Williams 7, Van Dijk 7, Tsimikas 8, Grujic 7, Jones 8, Elliott 6, Shaqiri 7, Minamino 8, Origi 6. Subs: Fabinho 6, Jota 6, Keita 6.
Matchcast: full match stats and commentary
KEY MOMENTS
9 ‘- Lincoln 0-1 Liverpool (Shaqiri). Shaqiri throws an impressive free kick into the top corner from the right edge of Lincoln’s penalty area.
18 ‘- Lincoln 0-2 Liverpool(Minamino). Minamino makes an exquisite shot into the far corner after Shaqiri immediately attacked Montsma’s bad ball off defense.
32 ‘- Lincoln 0-3 Liverpool (Jones). Curtis Jones throws a clever shot into the far corner from Origi’s clever header.
36 ‘- Lincoln 0-4 Liverpool(Jones). Another delicious ending. Jones spins his man, turns another, and shoots a deflected shot into the far corner.
46 ‘- Lincoln 0-5 Liverpool (Minamino). Minamino goes on to touch home on the volley after Palmer blocked Elliott’s shot.
60 ‘- Lincoln 1-5 Liverpool (Edun). The home team has retired one! Edun hits a good shot in the far corner after a commanding move down the left opened Liverpool up.
65 ‘- Lincoln 1-6 Liverpool (Grujic). Grujic fires a low shot into the far corner that Palmer can’t get down to avoid.
66 ‘- Lincoln 2-6 Liverpool(Montsma). Montsma drives a left corner from the crossbar after Adrian was caught in no man’s land.
89 ‘- Lincoln 2-7 Liverpool (Origi). Minamino feeds Origi as Liverpool breaks the beat. The forward wastes little time firing a low shot under Palmer.
KEY STATISTICS
- Since moving to Stoke in August 2015, more than half of Xherdan Shaqiri’s 23 goals in English football have come from outside the area (12), this being his first direct free-kick since May 2018 (Stoke v Crystal Palace).
- 12 and 12 – 24 goals have been scored between Liverpool (12) and their opponents (12) in their last three League Cup matches.
- Liverpool are the first top-flight English team to score at least four goals from outside the box in the same game since Manchester United beat Roma 7-1 in April 2007 in the Champions League.
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