Liverpool don't need Salah: this is what Luis Diaz did vs Fulham in Carabao Cup

Fulham and Liverpool are playing one of their most important games of the 2023/24 season. They are just a few minutes away from qualifying for a final, which will put them close to their first title of the year. For the second leg of the Carabao Cup semifinals, The Cottagers and The Reds are facing each other at Craven Cottage knowing that a win will allow them to play in the final of the tournament against Chelsea, who beat Middlesbrough on Tuesday.

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It is clear that Jurgen Klopp's side are the favorites. They not only have the advantage of having won the first game at Anfield Road 2-1, but they also have top players who can make the difference. But they are missing their main star, Mohamed Salah, who was injured for Egypt during the Africa Cup of Nations and will need a few weeks to recover.

However, so far they are not needing 'Mo'. At the start of the first half, Liverpool showed that they are better than their opponents and owned the ball, pushing Fulham into their own half and creating several chances to score goals. And in one of those they netted the opener: after 11 minutes, Luis Diaz received the ball inside the box, dribbled past a defender and shot with his right foot. He was lucky, as the ball deflected off a Fulham player and made goalkeeper Bernd Leno's save impossible.

That advantage allowed Klopp's team to keep their cool and shift the pressure on their opponents. After 2-1 in the first leg, The Reds have a two-goal lead and now Fulham have no choice but to attack to score a goal and get close to qualification again.

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They are meeting the target

At the start of the season, Klopp assured that his goal for this season was to compete in all tournaments until the end. And so far they are achieving it: they are leading the Premier League, they are in the round of 32 of the FA Cup and the UEFA Europa League. And with the victory they are getting against Fulham, they are very close to the final of the Carabao Cup.