Liverpool “attack” the Carabao Cup with poor experience in recent years

In the 2019/20 version of the Carabao Cup third round, Liverpool faced MK Dons, Lincoln City’s newly established rivals who remained in League One this season after reaching safety due to point calculations by game.

In last season’s game, Jürgen Klopp lined up a starting eleven that included Curtis Jones, Rhian Brewster, then-rookie Harvey Elliot, Ki-Jana Hoever and goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher (due to Alisson’s injury, Adrián was a starter in the first team). The bank featured academy figures Adam Lewis, Herbie Kane, Sepp van den Berg, Luis Longstaff and Leighton Clarkson. Supported by a midfield of first-team names, and with Milner initially starting on defense, Klopp’s youth squad in 2019/20 showed how Klopp treated the Carabao Cup as a way to ‘bleed’ young players, providing minutes of the first team for players who impressed on the U23 side (or even the youngest at the Academy)

Although Milner skews the average age a bit (as does the substitute goalkeeper who is called into service with the first team at the start of the season, to be fair), the average age of Liverpool’s three forwards in the season’s game last was only 18 years.

This season, however, the cup’s starting eleven featured only one name, Virgil van Dijk, who can be said to be a regular player in the current first team, and the Reds lined up a starting team with an average age of 24.4 years, older than that. of its competitors, Lincoln City, whose starting XI averaged just 23.7 years old.

Photo by James Williamson – AMA / Getty Images

Klopp’s choice to rely on youngsters with a “touch of experience” in this match last season was vindicated when Liverpool advanced to the Fourth Round of the Carabao Cup after beating MK Dons with a goal from Milner and Hoever ( who recently departed for Wolverhampon Wanderers).

When asked about prioritizing certain competitions amid this season’s congested schedule at the pre-game press conference, Pep Lijnders spoke about “attacking” every possible trophy and how the Reds have “evolved” as a squad to throughout a year, highlighting the additional possibility that current players provide.

Speaking about the underlying expectation of a young cup team, Lijnders added that “tomorrow’s team will be a strong team, some of you will be surprised to be honest.”

While the starting squad yesterday included Rhys Williams, a 19-year-old rookie who progressed rapidly through the Academy setup, the other young players had an experience that contrasted with their youth. Teenager Neco Williams, who started as a right-back on Thursday, finished the 2019/20 season with 11 appearances, for example, the same number as 28-year-old Xherdan Shaqiri, and local Curtis Jones beat them both, finishing in 2019/20. with a dozen appearances to his name. As the youngest member of Liverpool’s starting team, 17-year-old Harvey Elliot finished the 2019/20 season with eight appearances and was often selected to the first team squad on match day despite his age. While 17-year-old central defender Billy Koumetio likely missed out on injury, it is debatable that he would have played the role of Rhys Williams had he won an opening, rather than forming a central defense society of teenage rookies.

Photo by Chloe Knott – Danehouse / Getty Images

Describing the approach to choosing the team, Lijnders told reporters that “it is about finding a team that feels the responsibility to give everything and find a balance”, clarifying the need to match the “fire” of experienced young players. and discipline of the most experienced. He also highlighted the fact that Lincoln City (before yesterday) had scored five goals in counterattacks and, therefore, defensive awareness and tactical discipline would be necessary.

The strength of the team that faced Lincoln City yesterday was truly surprising to many, given Liverpool’s tendency to rely on youth for national cups. The use of new first-team players – Kostas Tsimikas made his left-back debut for his first competitive appearance with the Reds, and new signing Diogo Jota made his substitute debut – and players just outside the regular starting lineup in Takumi Minamino, who scored a brace, Divock Origi and Shaqiri, who found the score sheet themselves, speak perhaps of a different approach this season. Indeed, although Marko Grujić, who also scored, did not play for the Reds last season, he made 31 competitive appearances for Bundasliga Hertha Berlin, so it cannot be said that he lacks first-team experience.

The fact that Liverpool were able to field a much-changed team that nonetheless featured the majority of first-team players illustrates an approach to the 2020/21 Carabao Cup that underscores the newly discovered depth and experience of the team. team.

However, this additional depth could also underscore the scarcity of opportunities that were previously available to youth players. It has yet to be determined whether this approach of “attacking” all the trophies with more seasoned experience will lead to national cup glory, as the Reds face Arsenal next week in the Fourth Round of the Carabao Cup.