Liverpool 5-1 West Ham: Curtis Jones bags brace as Reds maul Hammers, storms into Carabao Cup semifinals

Liverpool has hammered West Ham 5-1 in their bid to reach the Carabao Cup semifinals, as academy graduate Curtis Jones bags a flashy brace to see off David Moyes’ side. Apart from Jones, Szoboszlai scored a banger to open the scoring, followed by Nunez and Salah’s strikes which helped the ease past a hapless West Ham side.

Liverpool inches closer to Carabao Cup finals

Liverpool are having a soothing season this time, owing to the brilliance of new recruits in the form of Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig and Mac Allister from Brighton, coupled with the strict vigil from their boss, Jurgen Klopp. They are currently sitting on second spot in the Premier League, with only Arsenal in the lead, as a pre-Christmas banger between the top two sides will decide the fate of these teams, going to the New Year. But, last night, Liverpool ran riot against a hapless West Ham side which could barely stand a chance in front of the mighty Reds’ as Klopp’s men had caught them unaware in almost every possible situation, thus hammering 5 goals past them.

It was a Dominik Szoboszlai stunner which got things underway for Liverpool, when he scored a superb shot from 25 yards out into the bottom corner when clock struck 28 minutes, as their next four route was never in doubt. It was rather a difficult match for them as they were coming on the back of a meagre stalemate in the hands of misfiring Manchester United, but Klopp had perfectly figured out any possible mishap in the Cup which could let them crash out of the prestigious tournament.

Curtis Jones added a close second within 11 minutes of the first strike, as he wielded his magic wand into deceiving West Ham custodian Areola into thinking that he might cut a cross back past the goal, instead driving the shot through his legs, reminiscing Richie Benaud style of “he did it between the legs”. Cody Gakpo was once again instrumental on the field with his tactics as he scored his 8th goal of the season in just 19 appearances, as he was given too much space to score their third goal of the night, before Mo Salah made it 4-1, racing ahead of the Hammers’ defenders, and teeing off a superb shot on the goal.

Jones scored his second of the night with six minutes remaining of the regulation time, as he finished off from an excellent run, thus completing the rout as Reds fixed their last four opponent to be Fulham, as they would be facing The Cottagers on the week starting from 8th January, 2024.

Harvey Elliott- the homegrown hero

Harvey Elliott, the hero of the game against Crystal Palace when he scored a 91st minute winner to give his side a much anticipated victory against a ruthless Eagles’ side, was once again at his best, as he came across several opportunities to perform a heavy run across the wings, before agonizingly firing it wide. He drew applause from his boss Klopp when he pitched a perfect cross towards Dutchman Gakpo, who bounced his header millimeters wide from the Hammers’ goal.

On the other hand, West Ham manager David Moyes presented a sorry picture when he was caught off-guard after the game, as he still could not find a win after 21 appearances in Anfield, having previously visited here as Everton boss. Jarrod Bowen’s goal on the 77th minute proved to be a scant consolation for the Hammers, but it was little compared to what they have faced in the hands of Reds. Their star player Kudus went close with first shot at goal but it was not enough for the visitors.

Moyes was heard saying after the game, “Whatever you say about us tonight, their performance was very good and they were fast and quick and all over us, right from the first minute. We never got a chance to breathe. I don’t rotate very often but you just can’t play them every game with what the scheduling is like. The only teams who’ve played more games than us over three years are Liverpool and Manchester City, and then we had the quickest turnaround. All of those things play a part.”

Liverpool face Arsenal next two days later as what promises to be a fiery top-of-the-table clash between the two sides, as their fate would be decided after the game.