In the third round of the EFL Cup, Liverpool secured a solid 5-1 win over West Ham, with Diogo Jota being the standout performer, scoring twice. This impressive performance came on the heels of Jota not being included in the weekend match, making this victory a substantial response. It also marked the beginning of Liverpool’s successful Carabao Cup defence, even as West Ham continued to struggle.
Jota, originating from Portugal, had been benched in favour of Darwin Nunez for Liverpool’s 3-0 triumph over Bournemouth. However, both forwards were selected for this match with nine other changes in the lineup. Despite Jota being stationed in a slightly lower role, he exemplified the sharpness required of Liverpool’s forward line with his two exceptional goals.
Nunez, on the other hand, found it challenging to create scoring opportunities, likely due to the absence of a quality passer in Arne Slot’s chosen squad. The first start since transferring from Juventus for Federico Chiesa did hint at potential, although the primary highlight was Jota’s well-placed header, courtesy of a misfired shot from Chiesa.
Although Quansah’s own goal for West Ham levelled the score following a questionable corner defence, Jota’s subsequent goal established Liverpool’s dominance. Soon after the second half began, a successful collaboration between Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo resulted in Jota’s second goal of the night.
While Jones and Endo had difficulty taking control of the midfield initially, Jones showed marked improvement as the match progressed. After securing the lead, Slot made a few changes, introducing Mohamed Salah and Alexis Mac Allister in place of Chiesa and Jota, with Tyler Morton being the only young player in Slot’s lineup.
Even though the guests initially posed a challenge, with former Reds’ star Danny Ings having a goal scrapped due to an offside in the 18th minute, and they garnered their strongest playing period when Caoimhin Kelleher, the goalie, blocked attempts by Michael Antonio, Max Kilman and Aaron Cresswell, matters didn’t immediately improve. Moscow players’ penalty appeals were dismissed when Kostas Tsimikas was hit by a cross from Vladimir Coufal that first contacted his gut before his hand.
Liverpool’s third and crucial point came from a handover between the two replacements, with Fabianski blocking a shot from Mac Allister that fell right to Salah who dispatched it with his first touch. Afterwards, as Salah appeared poised to sprint unhalted, Edson Alvarez was given a red card for a second offence that could be fined. Cody Gakpo then defeated Fabianski on his preferred post from the boundary zone, quickly achieving a double by the deflection of a shot off Jean-Clair Todibo when extra minutes were introduced.
Having made seven changes post-weekend, West Ham found themselves on a losing streak with three out of their latest four matches, thus amplifying stress on the newly appointed head coach, Julen Lopetegui.
Switching scenes to Emirates Stadium, it was a match that saw Arsenal’s fourth-in-line goalie, Jack Porter, become the team’s youngest starter at merely 16 years and 73 days, filling in for an injured David Raya. The night, however, belonged to 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who scored two strikes during his first entire match.
In the aftermath of their contentious draw against Manchester City, Arsenal didn’t seem likely to lose against a team that once enjoyed dealing decisive blows to Arsène Wenger’s teams during Sam Allardyce’s era, especially after Declan Rice gave them an initial advantage. Bolton did, for a time, provide a competitive response after Nwaneri’s two goals either side of half-time, courtesy of Aaron Collins.
Only having won this trophy twice before, the most recent in 1993 under George Graham, Arsenal transitioned smoothly into the fourth round with substitute Kai Havertz scoring a fifth goal, adding to Raheem Sterling’s full debut goal. The victory owed much to the blended efforts of both new and experienced players.
Bolton, supported by a substantial group of travelling fans, kicked off the game in style. A blunder by Calafiori near his own goal almost cost them the game when John McAtee set up Scott Arfield with a smart back-heel, but Arfield failed to score from near the goal post.
Bolton supporters were outraged when they thought Gabriel Jesus had fouled Josh Sheehan in the area following another successful charge. Their anger intensified when Arfield failed to clear a pass from Josh Nichols, leading to Rice scoring a powerful goal from the area’s periphery. It was Nwaneri, the youngest player in Arsenal’s history and the Premier League’s record breaker – when he was just over 15 – really stood out in the No 10 role, helping Arsenal dominate the game. Sterling and Bukayo Saka almost assisted Jesus in scoring more than once.
Just before halftime, Nwaneri scored his first goal, thanks to a pass from Myles Lewis-Skelly which allowed Sterling to set up the underaged player for an easy goal making it 2-0. Bolton could have been in deeper trouble if it wasn’t for Luke Southwood, who deflected Sterling’s curled shot and Jesus’ off-target shot.
This was Bolton’s first visit to north London since their EFL Cup loss in 2011, the same year they were demoted from the Premier League. They ended up making it worse for themselves when they irresponsibly attempted to play from the back in the second half, leading to a second goal for Nwaneri. Despite this, they kept fighting. Collins quickly reduced the deficit when he made the most of McAtee’s pass to evade Porter. But their defensive solidity was short-lived, as Sterling managed to score following a saved shot by Saka. It was, however, Havertz who ended this near-perfect night. – PA & Guardian.