By Fatma Younis
Liverpool edged past Chelsea 6-5 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Anfield on Thursday to book a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Bournemouth. The shootout victory extended Chelsea's miserable record in penalty shootouts against Liverpool to five defeats in five attempts, dating back to the 2007 Champions League semi-final.
Penalty shootout decides tie
Both goals in regulation time came from the spot. Morgan Rogers put Chelsea ahead after Ryan Gravenberch fouled Moises Caicedo, but Cody Gakpo equalised when Wesley Fofana handled in the area. The shootout featured 18 penalties with no saves in the first 12 attempts, before Mike Penders denied Gravenberch and Giorgi Mamardashvili stopped debutant Emmanuel Emegha. Fofana then skied Chelsea's eighth penalty over the crossbar to hand Liverpool victory.
Alonso's Anfield return ends in disappointment
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso, a former Liverpool midfielder who won the Champions League and FA Cup on penalties at Anfield, saw his first chance at silverware in a season without European football disappear. "Once we reached the penalties there is going to be a sad sight," Alonso said. "It is a small setback, probably the least important competition," he added, though Chelsea have not won a domestic cup since 2018.
Quarter-final draw brings Bournemouth
Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola lamented the quarter-final draw against his former club Bournemouth. "The only thing I wouldn't want is Bournemouth," he said. "We haven't been lucky with the draws." Liverpool have now knocked Chelsea out of this competition for the third time in six seasons as they pursue a third Carabao Cup title in that span.
Gomez scores first Anfield goal in 12 seasons
The decisive penalty was converted by Joe Gomez, who had never scored in 12 seasons and 278 appearances at Anfield. Substitutes Alexis Mac Allister, Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola also netted in the shootout, rewarding Iraola's policy of holding back premier players for the closing stages.
Tactical echoes of the past
Alonso set up Chelsea in a 4-4-1-1 formation reminiscent of Rafa Benitez's Liverpool teams of the 2000s. Jordan Henderson, returning to Anfield after a controversial move to Chelsea, was booed by the home crowd but held his nerve to score his penalty. Both sides fielded heavily rotated line-ups, with Liverpool's three £100 million signings starting on a bench valued at over half a billion pounds.
