Klopp will depart with trophy. A depleted Liverpool edged out Chelsea in the final of Carabao Cup

Liverpool and Chelsea battled for victory in the final of the Carabao Cup at Wembley.

The Merseysiders approached the decisive confrontation in a depleted state. Jürgen Klopp could not count on 10 players right away. In particular, Salah and Nunez, contrary to expectations, did not recover in time for the match.

The teams played an intriguing, albeit goalless, first half. Chelsea had a great chance to score with Palmer, but his shot from a few meters was saved by Kelleher. Liverpool lacked precision in Gakpo's dangerous shot.

In the 33rd minute, the ball found the back of Kelleher's net after Sterling's shot, but the goal was disallowed after a VAR review due to a controversial offside decision.

Towards the end of the hour mark, Liverpool's goal was disallowed once again. Van Dijk headed in Robertson's cross, but after a replay review, the referee ruled that the Reds' player, Endo, was offside at the moment of the cross, thereby influencing the play.

Fifteen minutes before the end of regular time, Gallagher had a golden opportunity to dismay the goalkeeper of the nominal visitors, but the ball cruelly glanced off the goalpost after his shot and exited the field of play. A few minutes later, the midfielder darted towards the rendezvous with the Reds' goalkeeper, but the latter thwarted any attempt to breach, making a decisive save.

At the end of regular time, Chelsea pressed forward in attacks, yet failed to breach the resolute Kelleher, who was in a spirited form, and the game spilled into overtime.

In the closing moments of the second extra time, just when it seemed the match was heading to a penalty shootout, Van Dijk scored once more. And this time, it was a legitimate goal. The defender won the aerial battle and headed the ball into Petrovich's net. Chelsea didn't have time to recover.

Thus, Liverpool secured their 10th League Cup victory in their history. This stands as an absolute record for the tournament.

English League Cup, final
Chelsea - Liverpool - 0:1
Goal: Van Dijk, 118