Reds and Gunners have several absences for the duel on account of the African Cup of Nations
Liverpool and Arsenal face each other this Thursday (13), at 16:45 (Brasília time) in the first match of the English League Cup semi-final. The match takes place at Anfield Road in Liverpool. The return game will be on the 20th of January and the winner will face Chelsea in the grand final, which will be held at Wembley, London.
The match for a place in the decision should have started last Thursday (6), at the Emirates Stadium, in London. But Liverpool faced an outbreak of covid-19 in the squad and asked to postpone the match. Thus, the duel will start in reverse order.
Coach Jurgen Klopp’s team reached the semi-final of the League Cup after beating Leicester on penalties in the quarter-finals. Klopp will not be able to count on two of the main players, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané, who defend Egypt and Senegal, respectively, in the African Cup of Nations. Like the duo, Naby Keitá also competes in the continental tournament for Guinea.
Like the Reds, Arsenal also lost players to the African Cup of Nations: Mohamed Elneny (Egypt), Thomas Partey (Ghana) and Nicolas Pepe (Ivory Coast). Aubameyang, on the other hand, is absence due to covid-19. However, Mikel Arteta has the return of Brazilian Gabriel Magalhães, who was suspended. Arsenal secured a spot in the semi-finals after beating Sunderland 5-1 in the quarterfinals.
