Jürgen Klopp is furious once more over VAR misunderstandings, giving Liverpool fans a new hero.

 

The Good, Bad and Ugly: Liverpool  beat Leicester 3-1 in the Carabao Cup, with Dominik Szoboszlai once again stealing the show with his cameo off the bench.

Having fallen behind to an early Kasey McAteer goal, the Reds pressed hard to find a way back into the game, and eventually got their reward with three second half goals.

Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota both staked their claims for places in Jürgen Klopp’s side against Tottenham at the weekend as they got on the scoresheet, while Dominik Szoboszlai once again stole the show with a brilliant strike from long range.

Okay, a bit more than that. As if the Hungarian could do any more to cement his early status as a fan favorite, he goes and thunders in a winner Steven Gerrard-style to send Liverpool through in the cup. The man can do no wrong at the moment.

It was also encouraging to see Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota both get on the scoresheet as they were handed their chance to impress, while Ben Doak also underlined his status as a player to keep a keen eye on for the future.

And Curtis Jones showed Jürgen Klopp yet another option to fill in for Trent Alexander-Arnold, with the academy graduate certainly looking more of a natural fit for the inverted role.

Liverpool’s home shirt for the 2023/2024 campaign pays homage to Bill Shankly and the legendary Reds manager’s final season in charge at Anfield. The Nike shirt features a bright red design with a bold white contrast on the colour and cuffs.

As much as Liverpool has provided plenty of excitement and, more importantly, got the results to match so far this season, the Reds have fallen into a slightly worrying habit.

For the fifth time in eight games this season, Klopp’s side had to come from behind. So far, it hasn’t cost them anything, but with a crucial game at Tottenham — one of the other early pace-setters in the Premier League — on Saturday, it’s a habit they can ill-afford to fall into again.

The lack of VAR in the Carabao Cup proved to be a sore point for Klopp after last season’s defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

“It makes sense if you play a competition and everywhere has VAR then why shouldn’t you?” Klopp said at the time. “I understand in earlier rounds when it’s maybe not possible at all levels. But it’s City against Liverpool and I think all the technical things are here, so why shouldn’t we use it?”

His mood wouldn’t have been improved early on against Leicester, with Liverpool left fuming as Kostas Tsimikas claimed to have been fouled in the build-up to the visitor’s opener, while Ben Doak was denied a clear penalty despite James Justin’s clumsy challenge, a decision you’d like to think would have been overturned by VAR.

The system is not used in the Carabao Cup until the semi-final stage, but considering plenty of the earlier rounds will be played at Premier League grounds, it is hard to disagree with Klopp’s point last year. It’s a confusing decision to say the least.

On this occasion, the lack of VAR didn’t cost Liverpool, but it might not be so lucky in the future.

The Good, Bad and Ugly: Liverpool beat Leicester 3-1 in the Carabao Cup, with Dominik Szoboszlai once again stealing the show with his cameo off the bench.

Having fallen behind to an early Kasey McAteer goal, the Reds pressed hard to find a way back into the game, and eventually got their reward with three second half goals.

Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota both staked their claims for places in Jürgen Klopp’s side against Tottenham at the weekend as they got on the scoresheet, while Dominik Szoboszlai once again stole the show with a brilliant strike from long range.

Okay, a bit more than that. As if the Hungarian could do any more to cement his early status as a fan favorite, he goes and thunders in a winner Steven Gerrard-style to send Liverpool through in the cup. The man can do no wrong at the moment.

It was also encouraging to see Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota both get on the scoresheet as they were handed their chance to impress, while Ben Doak also underlined his status as a player to keep a keen eye on for the future.

And Curtis Jones showed Jürgen Klopp yet another option to fill in for Trent Alexander-Arnold, with the academy graduate certainly looking more of a natural fit for the inverted role.

Liverpool’s home shirt for the 2023/2024 campaign pays homage to Bill Shankly and the legendary Reds manager’s final season in charge at Anfield. The Nike shirt features a bright red design with a bold white contrast on the colour and cuffs.

Asmuch as Liverpool has provided plenty of excitement and, more importantly, got the results to match so far this season, the Reds have fallen into a slightly worrying habit.

For the fifth time in eight games this season, Klopp’s side had to come from behind. So far, it hasn’t cost them anything, but with a crucial game at Tottenham — one of the other early pace-setters in the Premier League — on Saturday, it’s a habit they can ill-afford to fall into again.

The lack of VAR in the Carabao Cup proved to be a sore point for Klopp after last season’s defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

“It makes sense if you play a competition and everywhere has VAR then why shouldn’t you?” Klopp said at the time. “I understand in earlier rounds when it’s maybe not possible at all levels. But it’s City against Liverpool and I think all the technical things are here, so why shouldn’t we use it?”

His mood wouldn’t have been improved early on against Leicester, with Liverpool left fuming as Kostas Tsimikas claimed to have been fouled in the build-up to the visitor’s opener, while Ben Doak was denied a clear penalty despite James Justin’s clumsy challenge, a decision you’d like to think would have been overturned by VAR.

The system is not used in the Carabao Cup until the semi-final stage, but considering plenty of the earlier rounds will be played at Premier League grounds, it is hard to disagree with Klopp’s point last year. It’s a confusing decision to say the least.

On this occasion, the lack of VAR didn’t cost Liverpool, but it might not be so lucky in the future.

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