In the early morning of January 14, the first leg of the semi-final of the English League Cup, which was postponed for some reason, was played at Anfield, and the Reds Liverpool met the Gunners Arsenal, and in the case of Xhaka being sent off in the 24th minute, the Reds, who had played one more person for a long time, did not seize the opportunity, and the whole game was besieged but the goal was weak, and finally could only shake hands with the opponent 0-0.
The two teams were scheduled to play the first leg of the League Cup semi-final last week, but due to the large number of players who tested positive for the new crown in Liverpool's squad, the match was eventually postponed until the early hours of This Friday. Just 10 minutes into the opening, Gunners right-back Cedric was injured and could not insist on being replaced by Chambers. Two minutes later, Ramsdale's big kick bounced off Henderson and nearly bounced into his own door. In the 24th minute, the Reds counterattacked with a long pass, and Xhaka raised his foot too high to kick Down Jota during the defense, and was directly red carded by the referee.
After a series of heavy blows, the Gunners were forced to retreat across the board, while Liverpool, who had one more man and home advantage, attacked aggressively. In the first half of stoppage time, Takumi Minamino seemed to shoot from the left, and the ball slid out of the goal, startling Gunners goalkeeper Ramsdale in a cold sweat. In the second half, the Reds' offensive attack did not decrease, and in the 67th minute, Takumi Minamino received Robertson's direct shot from a small angle in the penalty area that was slightly deflected. In the 89th minute, the Reds had the best chance to break the goal, Chamberlain crossed from the right, Ramsdale struck but hit the ball in the middle, and Takushi Minamino put an anti-aircraft gun in front of the empty goal from 10 yards.
In this campaign, Liverpool had 77% of the ball, passing 683-199, corner kicks 8-1, creating 17 shots on goal, but only one hit the frame. Although the Gunners played one less person early, they finally saved the goal with excellent defense, and they also became the first team to keep a clean sheet from Liverpool at Anfield since April last year, and the first team since 2015 to face Liverpool with a player who was sent off and still kept a clean sheet.
In an interview with Sky Sports after the game, Reds coach Klopp said that the team started well and the players in the 90 games did well, but it was a pity that one more player did not score. Of course, the game is not over yet, and Liverpool will fight in the second leg.
However, Uncle Scum also has a bitter saying, in the case of Mane and Salah are both in the African Cup of Nations, although he still has forward players such as Firmino, Jota and Takushi Minamino available, their expressions are really unflattering. In this game, the first appearance of the 3 people on the front line, Jota and Firmino played the whole game but both 0 shots, Anda Minano did have a full 6 shots on goal, but did not shoot even once. The Reds' only on-target shot came from substitute Curtis Jones, who was also the only save of the game by Gunners goalkeeper Ramsdale.
In fact, this game once again illustrates a problem, that is, Liverpool really can't live without Salah. This season, Lionel Messi has scored 23 goals and delivered nine assists in 26 games, the other 2 men of the Red Arrow Trident Mane and Jota combined only 22 goals and 2 assists, even if Firnino's 7 goals and 3 assists are only 29 goals and 5 assists, the total number of 34 participating goals is only 2 more than Salah alone. In other words, the two most indispensable people in Liverpool today, except for centre-back Van Dijk, is the striker Salah, the former can ensure liverpool's lower limit of the game, but whether they can win, win a few goals depends on Salah's play.
Liverpool have been in talks for a contract extension with Salah in recent times, whose contract expires next summer, though the two sides have been unable to agree on the treatment of the new contract. It is reported that Salah wants to get a weekly salary of 500,000 pounds equal to Ronaldo', which is unacceptable to Liverpool. However, in a recent interview, Salah denied the rumor and said he was willing to stay at Anfield, but the decision was in the hands of the club. However, if they want to keep Salah, Liverpool will definitely need to offer a record-setting super salary, there is no doubt about it. And this game in the early hours of this morning should prompt them to make a decision as soon as possible.