A place in the final of the Carabao Cup is on the line as Liverpool take on Arsenal in the last four.

After the postponement of last week’s scheduled first leg at the Emirates Stadium, Anfield will now host the opening encounter of the two-legged affair.

Arsenal were knocked out of the FA Cup by Nottingham Forest on Sunday and will hope for a better cup showing in a competition they have not won since 1993.

Jurgen Klopp was back in the Liverpool dugout for their third-round win over Shrewsbury at the weekend after serving the required isolation after a positive Covid test, and defended the postponement of the Emirates Stadium leg, insisting Liverpool had “a lot of false positives” amid fears of a major outbreak.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

When is the match?

The game kicks off at 7:45pm GMT on Thursday 13 January at Anfield.

Where can I watch it?

The match will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Football and Ultra HD, with coverage beginning at 7pm. Subscribers can stream the fixture via the Sky Go app.

If you’re not a Sky customer you can grab a NOWTV Day Pass here to watch without a subscription. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

What is the team news?

Trent Alexander-Arnold was, eventually, the only Liverpool player confirmed to have contracted Covid, but the right-back has been able to return to training this week and may feature. Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are away at the Africa Cup of Nations, along with Naby Keita, while Divock Origi is among those on the treatment table.

Arsenal have had their own issues with the coronavirus and it was a thin squad beaten at the City Ground in Nottingham. Granit Xhaka missed the game after a positive test, while Emile Smith Rowe (groin) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (calf) were also absent.

Mikel Arteta has four players in Cameroon for Africa’s continental competition, including exiled striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. A lack of available senior midfielders could cause Arteta to favour an attacking lineup.

Predicted line-ups

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Matip, Robertson; Fabinho, Thiago, Jones; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Firmino, Jota

Arsenal XI: Ramsdale; Cedric, White, Gabriel, Tierney; Smith Rowe, Lokonga, Odegaard; Saka, Lacazette, Martinelli.

Odds

Liverpool 21/20

Draw 56/19

Arsenal 13/5

Prediction

Arsenal will be hoping to right the wrongs of their FA Cup defeat, but a stretched squad may find things tough against a Liverpool side eyeing silverware and keen to take charge of the tie with unexpected first leg home advantage. Liverpool 3-1 Arsenal

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