The official name is the English Football League Cup or EFL Cup. But due to sponsorship, the name became Carabao. A competition between 92 teams from the top 4 divisions of England. It is called the first major tournament of the English football season. Although it is slightly behind the FA Cup or the Premier League, the importance of the Carabao Cup cannot be underestimated. At least for Newcastle United in today’s final, its greatness is different.
Newcastle United is an integral part of English football. The team that won the English league title 4 times has won the FA Cup 7 times. But they have not won any other title in English football since 1955. And the last time they won a major title was in 1969. That was the Frazier Cup title. Which was completely abolished in the 1970-71 season.
As such, nothing new has been added to Newcastle’s trophy cabinet for the past 56 years. In the 2022-23 season, they reached the final of this League Cup. However, they had to give up their dream of the title after losing 2-0 to Manchester United. This time, their opponent is Liverpool. Their form is absolutely flying this season. A few days ago, they lost 2-0 to this Liverpool in the Premier League match.
However, the All Reds have no chance to be confident considering the result of that match. They were practically invincible until February. Until then, they had lost only one match. The dream was to win the quadruple title. But an unfortunate defeat in the FA Cup knocked them out. After that, they had to leave the UEFA Champions League after losing to Paris Saint-Germain last Tuesday.
However, Arne Slot’s team has retained the top spot in the English Premier League so far. Slot has given great football in his first season. Despite missing out on two of the four possible titles, the Dutch coach of the Allreds does not want to make any concessions on the question of the first title of the season.
When and where will the finale be held?
The Carabao Cup final between Liverpool and Newcastle United will be played at 10:30 PM Bangladesh time. The final will be held at the famous Wembley Stadium in England. John Brooks will be the referee for the match.
Whose side are the statistics?
Newcastle are coming off 2 wins from their last 5 matches. They have lost to Manchester City, Liverpool and Brighton. They have won against Nottingham Forest and West Ham. The match against the Hammers is their last match. And Liverpool have won their previous four matches but lost their last match to PSG.
Newcastle have not beaten Liverpool since December 2015. The All Reds are unbeaten in their last 17 matches against the Magpies. Naturally, the All Reds will have some psychological advantage.
Liverpool are the 10-time champions of this competition. At the same time, they are the current champions. They won the title by defeating Chelsea in the last season. Newcastle, however, have never won the title of this competition. They have been runners-up twice. They last reached the final in the 2022-23 season. They lost to Manchester United in that season.
Two teams plagued by injuries and suspensions
Both teams are hit by injuries and suspensions. Liverpool will not get their defensive duo Connor Bradley and Joe Gomez in this match. Both are injured. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate are a bit worried after the PSG match. Liverpool is in a bit of a dilemma without four defenders. Jarrell Quinshaw, who was seen at right-back today, can be seen next to Virgil van Dijk. And Japan’s Wataru Endo can be the center back.
And Newcastle will not get their top three stars in the big match of the final. They will miss both defenders, Lewis Hall and Siven Botman. Big star Anthony Gordon is not available due to suspension.
