Liverpool v Chelsea (ELC Final 27/2/22 4.30pm) , Thanks Kepa & Tuchel

I think Kepa is going to need regular therapy, or Virgil and Fabinho will haunt him, for a very long time.

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Carabeau Cup.

Youā€™re welcome.

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Donā€™t be so mad :pleading_face:

Fabinho just made him look silly, those dinks down the center happen. Virgil made him look weak, like he wasnā€™t in the goal at all.

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Virgil has a way of making international footballers look like they are 12 year old playing in a menā€™s league. Iā€™ve genuinely never seen anything like it. I remember in Maneā€™s first season with us he found himself 1-1 with Virgil with an acre of space behind and almost immediately gave up on the idea of beating him. Sadio Mane, the man who never gives up barely even tried such was the perceived pointlessness of it.

Jonah Lomu is the only analogue I can think of that I have ever seen. Maybe Bo Jackson, but Iā€™m basing that more on myth and well selected highlights than on having viewed the effect of it. So to that point, the only saving grace for Kepa is that Virgil does that to other players so he shouldnā€™t feel so bad.

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Yeah, I think both are reasonable comparisons, just players who can do things that donā€™t really fit in the normal frame. Jackson was very much like that, a man his size cannot move that fast. The momentum he had when in full sprint was unreal, hence just running over the top of Bosworth. Okoye was like that too, though not as fast.

The first 5/6 were just so professional, completely ignored Kepa, I think the first one to show any attitude towards him was Elliott, loved how Neville was trying urge him to miss, same with Kelleher and he just slotted it away.

Really do rate Kelleher in that final, his leg save at the end of normal time and the way he knew not to piss around at the back.

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Love Kellehers confidence on the ball and ability. The lads trust him so much and with his ability of both feet really helps us. With more experience he will be incredible imo.

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The best compliment I could give Kelleherā€™s calmness and ability on the ball is to say that I was never worried about him missing that pen. I was more confident heā€™d score than Origi, Konate or Robertson.

That was the first time heā€™s looked visibly nervous playing for us and he stuck it in the top corner anyway. Top class.

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I think that during one of the post match interview, Kelleher mentioned that he actually mishit the ball a bit and he sent it upwards instead of towards the bottom corner.

Edit: Found the videoā€¦at around 1:49

I burst out laughing when he hit that! He really looked nervous, and I was thinking what a cruel situation it was that we might lose because of his penalty kick. I was just hoping that he got decent placement, did not worry to much about power, and made Kepa make a guess instead of missing the goal. Then he fucking leathered that top shelf, Kepa dives the wrong way, then does exactly what I worried Kelleher would do.

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This doesnā€™t fit my narrative so Iā€™m going to say his humility is another reason to like the kid.

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I was hoping he would save one all the way through to be the ā€˜heroā€™ but as soon as Kepa stepped up I was willing him to sky it.

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Bowling at Lara the day he hit 400 against us. Heard several bowlers say that they were trying to hide from the captainā€™s eye. Pretty similar situation.

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Tuchel going full Pep Guardiola with his unnecessary tinkering and over complicating of the tactics.

Things I fucking love to see

Nice little footage from the final, can be watched for free. The penalty session is interesting, as it is filmed from behind the goal, and you can see the playersā€™ faces before and after their shot. :+1:

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Hendo about the league cup win:

ā€œThereā€™s only one place for me to start and thatā€™s Wembley,ā€ the No.14 writes.

ā€œAs a club and as a group of players we donā€™t like to dwell on past victories because the challenge is always to secure new ones, but there are also times when you have to make an exception and this is definitely one of them.

ā€œWhere to begin, though? How do you put into words what happened? Iā€™m no wordsmith and there will be plenty who will say it and write it much better than I ever could, but for me everything that took place from start to finish captured Liverpool Football Club at its very best.

ā€œThere were moments when we suffered. Periods of the game when Chelsea were on top and we had to roll with the punches. At times, our football could have been better and at others we felt the kind of stresses that only come when two top sides are giving as good as they get with the stakes as high as they can be.

ā€œThatā€™s what makes the outcome so special, though. Cups arenā€™t given out, they have to be earned and on Sunday every single player in red ā€“ those who got onto the pitch and those who didnā€™t ā€“ every member of the backroom staff and every supporter did their bit. If ever a victory was earned by togetherness and trust, it was this one.

ā€œI mention trust because I think it was the crucial factor. From the gaffer trusting Caoimhin Kelleher to us trusting one another when the game went to penalties, every bit of faith paid off. It was the same with the fans, who never once wavered and helped push us over the line by keeping on believing in us and backing us all the way.

ā€œIt was a club win because everyone played his or her part, but I would like to single out Caoimhin and not just because he was the match-winning hero either. I think the way he has conducted himself since being given the opportunity to start regularly in the Carabao Cup is an example to all young professionals and all squad players. He literally couldnā€™t have done any better.

ā€œHe deserves much of the credit for this of course, but a share must also go to the other ā€™keepers at Liverpool, particularly Alisson, who is never anything other than generous and supportive of his teammates, because they have created a competitive culture which helps bring out the best in all of them.

ā€œThe same goes for the manager and the coaching staff for believing in Caoimhin and giving him chances to develop and prove himself. So too the coaches at the Academy who brought him along, investing time, effort and energy into his progress until he was good enough to take the next step.

ā€œIt really is a brilliant story and it couldnā€™t have happened to a nicer lad. Seeing him with the trophy at Wembley was a massive highlight for all of us, right up there with the lads dancing to Dua Lipa with our fans. Those scenes will live with me forever.

ā€œWe donā€™t want to stop there, though. We have another game in another competition tonight and having won one trophy we have to keep kicking on. Experience tells me it is going to be tough as we are up against another Premier League team and weā€™re coming off a massive high, so we have to be careful on both fronts.

ā€œNorwich gave us a really difficult game a couple of weeks ago and there was a period of that match when they would have thought they were on course to grab a win. So we know what weā€™re up against and we have to be prepared for that. It is up to ourselves to keep on setting our own standards and there is no reason whatsoever for them to drop now.

ā€œWe also owe it to our supporters to use our latest success as a platform to build from. Honestly, the sights and sounds they produced at Wembley were unforgettable. Iā€™m biased, but with good reason and Iā€™d argue with anyone that there is no other set of fans who are better at sensing how and when to give players that extra bit of help that you need from time to time. Thereā€™s definitely none better at celebrating!

ā€œIā€™d like to thank all of you for that on behalf of all of the players.

ā€œWe literally couldnā€™t have done it without you. So letā€™s keep on working together, hopefully bringing out the best in one another and see where it takes us.ā€

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Class from our skipper.

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Just watching a replay of the pensā€¦after the Kepa kickā€¦watch the linesmanā€¦looks like Will Mellorā€¦but he also has a wry smile on his faceā€¦secret LFC supporter???

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