"Cody is the king", "Luckiest team in football" - Fans on X react as Liverpool seal comeback win vs Fulham in EFL Cup
Liverpool staged an impressive second-half comeback to beat Fulham 2-1 in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final on Wednesday (January 10).
The Reds dominated the early stages but couldn't find their way past a brave Fulham defense. That would come back to haunt them and Anfield was stunned into silence in the 19th minute.
A moment to forget for Virgil van Dijk as the Reds captain failed to clear his lines, allowing Andreas Pereira to pounce and find Willian. The Brazilian did superbly to wheel away from Ibrahima Konate before firing past Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.
The Merseysiders reacted well in search of an equalizer. Joe Gomez went closest for the hosts on the stroke of halftime, striking just past Leno's goal.
It was much of the same in the early stages of the second half with Liverpool pressing from the front. Ryan Gravenberch got himself in a good position in the 49th minute but shot wide.
Klopp had seen enough with his side still trailing and threw Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo on in the 54th minute. The attacking duo came on for Harvey Elliott and Gravenberch, with the Reds going with a front four.
However, Fulham were still a threat on the counter with Liverpool playing a high line. Willian and Bobby De Cordova-Reid were giving Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate all sorts of problems.
De Cordova-Reid had an excellent chance in the 62nd minute but made the wrong decision. He surged forward on the right with Andreas Pereira arriving in the box but he failed to get his head up and instead, his shot was saved by Kelleher.
Anfield screamed penalty in the 67th minute when the ball struck Antonee Robinson on the arm from a free-kick. VAR isn't in play so referee David Coote didn't have a decision to make.
It needn't matter though as Liverpool levelled matters just a minute later through Curtis Jones. The English midfielder tried his luck from the edge of the box and it took a massive deflection off Tosin Adarabioyo and left Leno rooted to his spot.
Klopp's men were purring and they stormed into a 2-1 lead in the 71st minute. Gakpo got himself in the right place at the right time to turn Nunez's fine pass past Leno. The two second-half substitutes linked up superbly to turn the game completely around.
Nunez somehow didn't get himself on the score sheet in the 87th minute. Leno produced a fine save to deny the Uruguayan at point-blank range.
The Merseysiders showed courage as they staged a second-half comeback. It means they'll take a 2-1 lead in the tie to Craven Cottage on January 24.
One fan hailed Gakpo who now has four goals in four Carabao Cup outings:
"Cody is the king of the cup this season."
But, a rival fan wasn't too impressed by the Merseysiders' display:
"Liverpool are the luckiest team in football."
Here's how fans on X (formerly Twitter) reacted to Liverpool's win against Fulham:
David Seaman reckons Liverpool can deal with their current absences
Liverpool's victory against Fulham came without their top scorer this season Mohamed Salah. The 31-year-old is at the African Cup of Nations with Egypt this month. Klopp is also dealing with several injuries to his squad, including the likes of Andy Robertson, Dominik Szoboszlai, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Joel Matip.
However, David Seaman thinks the Reds have the strength in depth to cope with the situation. He said (via Empire of the Kop):
"When you look at that forward line, you think ‘yeah, they’re going to cope with it quite easily. Jota on the bench, he comes on and makes the impact that he does. It’s frightening but that’s the standard of the squad that they’ve got."
Klopp spent the past summer rebuilding his midfield with the likes of Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, and Wataru Endo arriving. This only helped strengthen an impressive squad at the German's disposal.