Carabao Cup: Liverpool VS Derby County: Prediction, Probable lineups, Head-to-head, and Key Stats
Wednesday evening will mark the beginning of Liverpool's EFL Cup title defence when Derby County visits Anfield for the third round
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Virgil van Dijk : Will he click for Liverpool?Kepa Arrizabalaga's missed penalty kick at Wembley in February gave the Reds their ninth title in the competition, a record they will want to extend this season.
The last time Derby County won at Anfield was almost 24 years to the day before this third-round matchup.
Sunday was a morale-boosting day for Liverpool as they defeated Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 away from home.
Before that, Liverpool had lost two consecutive league games against Nottingham Forest and Leeds United, respectively.
The Rams travel to Merseyside after drawing non-league Torquay in the FA Cup. The Rams were relegated last season after tremendous financial upheaval.
Five of their past six matches in all competitions have ended in defeat, with a 4-2 triumph over Bristol Rovers on October 29 being the only exception.
Derby County is fifth in League One after accumulating 25 points in 16 games.
As for head-to-head stats, Liverpool has come out victorious 71 times, while Derby have won 35 of them. In comparison, 29 games have been drawn.
Key stats for the match
- Liverpool have defeated the Rams five times in a row and is unbeaten in the past nine games between the teams.
- Liverpool has recorded four clean sheets in the last six encounters against Derby County.
- In their last six matches across all competitions, Derby County have conceded nine goals.
- Derby County have won just one of their previous six road games across all competitions, suffering two defeats and three draws.
Liverpool team news
Liverpool's manager Jurgen Klopp has frequently complained that the Reds have too many games on their schedule, so expect him to make substitutions in this contest.
Caoimhin Kelleher will replace Alisson Becker in goal, and Nat Phillips, Kostas Tsimikas, Fabio Carvalho, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are likely to start as well.
Naby Keita and James Milner are also attempting to recover from injuries and get back into the squad.
Predicted lineup: Kelleher, Firmino, Nunez, Ramsay, Gomez, Phillips, Tsimikas, Elliott, Bajcetic, Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Carvalho.
Derby County Team News
The League One club will be without several players for the pivotal matchup. Due to injuries, Jason Knight, Curtis Davies, and James Chester cannot play. Sunday's red card against Torquay has resulted in the suspension of Eiran Cashin.
While there is a possibility that Tom Barkhuizen and David McGoldrick will return from their recent absences, it is unlikely.
Predicted lineup: Wildsmith, Osula, Collins, Smith, Forsyth, Cashin, Roberts, Mendez-Laing, Hourihane, Bird, and Dobbin.
Derby County VS Liverpool prediction
Even with the expected substitutions, the Reds should have too much for a League One team now ranked seventh.
Derby County will likely make an effort and may cause a few problems, but Liverpool should have enough in their arsenal to win the match.
Final prediction: Liverpool 3-0 Derby County