EFL Cup: With concerns over Premier League fixture congestion due to COVID-19 outbreak, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and his Tottenham Hotspur counterpart Antonio Conte both said they were happy to cede any home advantage and play in a one-off EFL Cup semifinal to ease the burden on his players. Follow live updates on InsideSport.IN
The two-legged affair is due to be played in the weeks commencing January 3 and 10. Premier League officials are set for a meeting with captains and managers from all 20 top-flight clubs later on Thursday to discuss the decision to press ahead with the hectic winter schedule.
Your #CarabaoCup Semi-Final ties are confirmed!#EFL pic.twitter.com/2ykOI8rL4N
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) December 22, 2021
For Klopp and Liverpool, the semifinal will come after a run of five matches in 12 days while the North London club have just recovered from a major Covid-19 outbreak and must rearrange postponed Premier League games at Brighton and Leicester, plus a trip to Burnley which was called off due to snow at Turf Moor.
EFL Cup: Jurgen Klopp & Antonio Conte want semifinal to be one-leg affair ahead of Premier League meeting over fixture congestion
Conte guided his Tottenham side to a 2-1 win against London rivals West Ham and now the Italian will have a reunion with former club Chelsea. On the other hand, Klopp made 10 changes from Sunday’s draw at Tottenham as Liverpool fought back from 3-1 down to defeat Leicester on penalties and book a last-four tie with Arsenal.
“Honestly, if I had to decide, maybe it would be to play one game and not two games – especially, I repeat, for the situation we are living – but we have to respect the rules,” Conte said at the end of the game.
EFL Cup: Jurgen Klopp & Antonio Conte want semifinal to be one-leg affair ahead of Premier League meeting over fixture congestion
Jurgen Klopp also echoed similar sentiments but also added that he does not envisage a change being made at this stage. “I think it would be better with one game absolutely, but obviously what I say is not too important. ‘If there are two games, then we will play two games. But it would be helpful if there was only one, true.
“I don’t just speak about player welfare this year, I have been speaking about it for six years or maybe longer. If the things I say would help more, I would say it much more often. But it doesn’t help. The only thing I do with these messages is I create headlines. They never arrive at the right places. I said it before, I would prefer only one semi-final. But I can’t see any kind of changes actually.”
EFL Cup: Jurgen Klopp & Antonio Conte want semifinal to be one-leg affair ahead of Premier League meeting over fixture congestion
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