Jota and Gakpo double as Liverpool come from behind to beat West Ham | Carabao Cup

The faces in the coaching suite and on the pitch may have changed, but the story of Liverpool and West Ham in the Carabao Cup remains the same. For the second year in a row, Liverpool beat the Hammers 5-1 at Anfield to progress in the competition that meant so much to Jürgen Klopp seven months ago. The promised improvement was nowhere to be seen in Julen Lopetegui’s team.

For Arne Slot, however, it was another very encouraging performance as Liverpool moved into the fourth round with a comfortable lead. His team recovered from a Jarell Quansah own goal to outclass West Ham with braces from Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo and a single goal from substitute Mohamed Salah. Edson Álvarez’s deserved red card capped a miserable night up north for West Ham.

The slow start to Lopetegui’s reign was not the only thing worrying West Ham’s numerous fans at Anfield. In the opening minutes of the third round match, they carried a banner reading “Stop exploiting loyalty” to protest against rising ticket prices and the removal of some concessions at their club. Liverpool fans also joined in the protest as it took place outside the stadium before kick-off. A promising, productive period midway through the first half helped to lift the visitors’ spirits, if only temporarily.

Liverpool’s side, which made nine changes from Saturday’s Premier League win over Bournemouth and featured new signing Federico Chiesa for the first time, started brightly. Darwin Núñez was a constant threat to the West Ham defence, frequently winning back possession and giving his opponents no time on the ball. The hosts’ efforts, however, resulted in few chances. West Ham, on the other hand, were dangerous as soon as they got into the game.

Jean-Clair Todibo should have done better than to head in Aaron Cresswell’s free-kick. Moments later, captain Jarrod Bowen made a determined run down the right, sending Crysencio Summerville in on the left. The new signing’s hard first touch looked to have wasted the chance, but the ball bounced back into the path of Danny Ings, who converted through the legs of Caoimhín Kelleher. The former Liverpool striker was unmarked and offside, but West Ham’s celebrations did not last long.

The breakthrough was absolute chaos from Slot’s perspective. Todibo headed a corner from Bowen to Álvarez, who struggled to get the ball under his feet and when he finally did, he was denied by Conor Bradley’s tackle. Wataru Endo tried to clear the ball but managed to fire the ball past Quansah and into the goal off the unfortunate defender.

West Ham’s joy lasted all of four minutes. Liverpool equalised thanks to some fluid play and Jota’s sharp reactions. The Portugal international broke through the visitors’ defence with a direct pass that released Gakpo on the left wing. Gakpo’s fine cross found Chiesa, who fired an acrobatic volley towards Lukasz Fabianski. Before the West Ham goalkeeper or Max Kilman could intervene, Jota darted in front of the pair as soon as the ball left the Italian international’s feet and equalised with a brave header from close range.

Jota again troubled West Ham when Liverpool took the lead shortly after half-time, and minutes after Quansah had survived fierce appeals from the visitors for handball in his own penalty area. There was more to come when Bowen’s cross found Kostas Tsimikas. Referee Andy Madley was again unmoved, rightly so as it turned out, and cautioned Lopetegui for his protests. Replays showed the ball hitting the left-back in the stomach.

Liverpool’s lead was largely down to the determination and vision of Curtis Jones. The midfielder first set up the goal with a strong, surging run from deep in his own half of the pitch and then, after exchanging passes with Gakpo, played a perfectly weighted ball into Jota’s path in the box. The striker showed his usual precision in front of goal, finding Fabianski’s bottom left corner.

West Ham briefly had a chance to recover, but they lacked a player with the hunting instincts of Liverpool’s No. 20. Kilman had a great chance to equalise after Kelleher made an impressive block from substitute Michail Antonio. The defender struggled too long with the rebound and was pressed by the Liverpool defence. Carlos Soler could also have equalised, but his volley from 12 yards ricocheted high into the Anfield stands. Their evening deteriorated rapidly after that.

Mohamed Salah, Chiesa’s second-half substitute, decided the game for West Ham with an impressive finish. Fabianski saved from another Liverpool substitute, Alexis Mac Allister, after Salah sent Bradley to the byline and the right-back laid the ball back for the Argentine midfielder. The rebound fell perfectly to Salah’s feet, who slammed an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net. Salah was then brought down by Alvarez’s last-minute foul. It was the West Ham midfielder’s second booked offence and he could not complain when the inevitable red card was shown.

Gakpo still had time to compound West Ham’s misery when he scored a fourth goal just before the end after a lovely exchange with Núñez and found the bottom corner. His fifth goal came with another low shot that deflected past the unmarked Fabianski. The defending champions advance.