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Big-spending Chelsea lost to a depleted Liverpool side by a narrow 1-0 margin in the Carabao Cup final, falling at the final hurdle once more on February 25. Pundit Gary Neville was brutal in his assessment of the game after the Blues failed to claim a first piece of silverware of the season.
Liverpool were missing several first-team regulars, including talismanic forward Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota and Dominik Szoboszlai. The manager had to resort to naming seven academy graduates in his 20-man squad for the match at Wembley on Sunday.
Chelsea have also had their share of injury problems this season, but they had most of their stars available for the final. Manager Mauricio Pochettino named the teenage duo of Jimi Tauriainen and Billy Gee on the bench for his side.
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Both sides took turns taking the initiative in the game, with the goalkeepers on both sides performing very well. Jurgen Klopp showed great faith in his youngsters, and his side's winner came from a corner won by Bobby Clark. Captain Virgil van Dijk scored in 118th minute to secure the win for the Reds.
Commentating fo Sky Sports, Gary Neville was unimpressed with the performance of the Blues against Klopp's side. The pundit referred to the west London side as bottle jobs for failing to win the game, saying (via Simon Stone):
"You called them Klopp's kids. In extra time it's been Klopp's kids against the blue billion pound bottle jobs."
Klopp trusted Conor Bradley to start at right-back in the game, with the 20-year-old operating in midfield after an injury to Ryan Gravenberch. He also sent on the teenage trio of James McConnell, Jayden Danns and Clark, all of whom have featured in the academy this season.
Klopp set the record for the most teenagers to appear in a League Cup final since 2007 when Arsenal had four.
Chelsea set unwanted record in loss to Liverpool
The defeat to Liverpool at Wembley means Chelsea's season has gone from bad to worse. With a trophy on the line, Pochettino's side couldn't find the required level to claim a win over the Reds.
Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk stepped up to score the winner in the 118th minute of the tie, having seen a goal ruled out during normal time. The defeat means Chelsea become the first side in history to lose six successive domestic cup finals.
The Blues last won a domestic cup final in 2018 when they edged Manchester United 1-0 in the FA Cup final. Since then, they have lost to Manchester City, Arsenal, Leicester City and Liverpool (thrice), all between 2019 and 2024.
