Live match preview – Liverpool vs Leicester 22.12.2021
Team news, stats and how to follow ahead of Liverpool vs Leicester in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday; kick-off 7.45pm.
Team news
Fabinho, Curtis Jones, Virgil van Dijk and Thiago are expected to remain out for Liverpool after positive Covid-19 results. Jordan Henderson is also recovering from illness.
Divock Origi, Nathaniel Phillips, Harvey Elliott and Adrian all remain out with injury, while Andy Robertson serves the first of a three-match suspension after his red card against Tottenham on Sunday.
In the last round eight weeks ago, Liverpool made 11 changes, with academy graduates Tyler Morton and Harvey Blair making their full debuts with a further five of their contemporaries on the bench. It appears likely Liverpool will dip into those reserves again.
“We always rely on them. The one thing if you want to have a healthy club is to have a proper inside pathway, that the academy is important, that the academy has a chance to improve inside our club to become first-team players,” Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders said.
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Pepijn Lijnders, Liverpool’s assistant manager, says the four players who tested positive for Covid will not be rushed back into action, despite the busy festive fixture list
“That is why we construct our squad like we construct it, why we give so many young players opportunities. We have five Liverpool debuts in the League Cup this year. That is healthy, it is something we want.
“We have the talents – it’s not as if we don’t have it – but we want to give them the opportunity to grow inside our club.
“If (senior) players are unavailable, we see it as a challenge, but it is something which will create new players and that is what we want as well, so it’s only a good thing.”
Leicester had Premier League games against Tottenham and Everton postponed following a Covid outbreak at the club, so it remains to be seen who will be available at Anfield.
Jannik Vestergaard, Hamza Choudhury, Kelechi Iheanacho, Ayoze Perez and Ademola Lookman missed the games against Napoli and Newcastle this month because of illness and coronavirus-related issues.
Jonny Evans and Caglar Soyuncu both suffered hamstring injuries during the Foxes’ last match against the Magpies on December 12 and may have been afforded enough time to recover without having missed a fixture. Daniel Amartey will be back in the squad after his recent absence.
How to follow
Follow Liverpool vs Leicester in our dedicated live match blog. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after full-time.
Last time out…
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Tottenham’s match with Liverpool in the Premier League
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Leicester’s win over Newcastle in the Premier League
Opta stats
- This will be the third League Cup meeting between Liverpool and Leicester – the Reds won 4-1 in the third round in 1986-87 (Steve McMahon netting a hat-trick), while the Foxes won 2-0 in the third round in 2017-18.
- Leicester are winless in their last 10 away games against Liverpool in all competitions (D2 L8), after winning three in a row at Anfield between 1997 and 2000 before this.
- Liverpool are looking to reach the League Cup semi-finals for the first time since 2016-17. They’ve reached the last eight just once since then, losing 5-0 at Aston Villa in 2019-20.
- Since winning the competition in 2000, Leicester have reached the League Cup semi-finals in just one of the last 21 campaigns, doing so in 2019-20.
- Liverpool are winless in their last four home League Cup games (D2 L2), though one of those draws did end in a penalty shootout victory against Arsenal. It’s the Reds’ longest ever run without a win at Anfield in the competition.
- Leicester are winless in their last 10 League Cup games against fellow Premier League sides (D8 L2), though five of those eight draws have resulted in the Foxes progressing via a penalty shootout.
Latest Essential Football Podcast
In the latest Essential Football Podcast, host Alice Piper is joined by Ben Ransom and Gerard Brand to discuss an eventful weekend of Premier League football, despite only four games taking place.
PART ONE | Was Spurs 2-2 Liverpool the game of the season? Why Liverpool’s weaknesses make for an outstanding spectacle, plus analysis of Man City’s 4-0 win over Newcastle and another slip up for Chelsea.
PART TWO | Arsenal shine again at Leeds, but do they really need a new striker given Gabriel Martinelli’s form? Are Leeds in trouble? And would football really benefit from a Covid circuit-break?
