Chelsea - Liverpool: "Gift" not easy to get

Jurgen Klopp's first farewell gift since publicly announcing his decision to leave Liverpool at the end of the season will begin at Wembley on Sunday, where the Reds face Chelsea in the first of three possible finals by the end of the season.

Chelsea and Liverpool will face off in the English League Cup final

In early February, a shocking announcement was made by coach Klopp, confirming that he would stop coaching at Liverpool at the end of the season. This 56-year-old strategist wanted to rest, a completely legitimate reason after nearly 9 years of dedication, and brought to the Anfield tradition room almost every title possible: the English championship after a 30-year wait in 2020, the 2019 Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup and the 2019 European Super Cup, the FA Cup and the 2022 League Cup.

But when the shock wore off, people started talking about the positive impact of this announcement. Klopp made his decision about his future when Liverpool were still competing on all four fronts of the season: reaching the League Cup final, leading the Premier League, reaching the fifth round of the FA Cup and being present in the last 16 of the Europa League. Therefore, wanting to win every possible trophy this season as a “farewell gift” to Klopp is exactly what everyone at Liverpool is thinking!

Liverpool have continued their fine form into the new year, winning nine of their 11 games in all competitions – barring a draw with Fulham in the second leg of their League Cup semi-final and a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal in the Premier League. Despite a surprise personnel crisis on the eve of the League Cup final, Klopp remains determined: “There’s a phrase that goes around, as long as we have 11 men, we’ll go out and fight.”

Indeed, in the 4-1 Premier League win over Luton in the early match of round 26 last Wednesday, Liverpool's squad included no top goalkeeper Alisson Becker, defenders Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joel Matip, midfielders Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones, and strikers Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota.

With almost the entire squad sidelined through injury, Klopp has had to include a host of academy players in his squad, including a bench of five players aged 19 or younger - including Trey Nyoni, who is only 16. Of those stars, only Salah and Nunez have the best chance of returning to play in the final.

Liverpool dominated Chelsea in a 4-1 win at Anfield in the Premier League just three weeks ago, but the injury situation could change the balance of power on Sunday. Not to mention, Chelsea have been coming back strongly in recent weeks.

The Blues' draw at Man City last Saturday ended Pep Guardiola's side's 11-game winning run in all competitions, following back-to-back away wins against Aston Villa and Crystal Palace. Chelsea will be motivated after losing both the FA Cup and League Cup finals to Liverpool in 2022 - both on penalties after 0-0 draws.

It would be a dream farewell for Klopp after nine years in charge, and he knows it may not be his last trip to Wembley as a manager if Liverpool are successful and go all the way in the FA Cup. It is a shame that, at this stage, Klopp cannot take a full-strength team to England's national stadium to mark the occasion.

* On Sports live at 10pm on February 25

VIET TUNG

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