The road to Wembley: How the Reds reached the final
Relive Liverpool's journey to a Capital One Cup final meeting with Manchester City at Wembley with our look back at the Reds' previous victories in the competition this season.
Liverpool 1-1 Carlisle United - September 23, 2015 - Anfield
The Reds kicked off their Capital One Cup campaign with a third-round meeting with League Two side Carlisle United at Anfield. But a home draw against one of the competition's lowest-ranked teams was by no means as straightforward as it appeared it might be when Danny Ings headed in the opener after 23 minutes.
Derek Asamoah's cool finish with half an hour gone brought the visitors level and marked the start of a rearguard action that saw Liverpool end up with just one goal to show for their 58 shots across 90 minutes and extra-time. Thankfully, the hosts were more fortunate in the penalty shootout, as the hero on the night - Adam Bogdan - saved three spot-kicks to secure a place in the next round.
Liverpool 1-0 Bournemouth - October 28, 2015 - Anfield
It was Anfield again for the fourth round, but this time Barclays Premier League opposition awaited in the form of newly-promoted Bournemouth. Despite the visitors' standing, Jürgen Klopp took the brave decision to hand first starts for the club to Connor Randall, Joao Carlos Teixeira and Cameron Brannagan.
Nathaniel Clyne also clocked up a personal milestone on the night, netting his first goal for the Reds since a summer move from Southampton. The No.2's back-post finish after just 17 minutes set up the victory, and the hosts held out against some late pressure from the Cherries to get the job done.
Southampton 1-6 Liverpool - December 2, 2015 - St Mary's
Liverpool delivered the most emphatic performance of their campaign and one of their best under Klopp as they thrashed Southampton to reach the semi-finals. An away clash with Ronald Koeman's side looked to be daunting and, when Sadio Mane put the hosts ahead after just one minute, Saints appeared to be living up to their billing as difficult opponents. But two quickfire goals from the returning Daniel Sturridge utterly turned the game on its head, and laid the foundations for a hammering.
Divock Origi's first hat-trick in English football and a late Jordon Ibe goal added the gloss as the Reds marched into the next round with a huge win. After the game, Origi reflected on his achievement, saying: "I've worked so hard to be here and I'm glad I could show my qualities today."
Stoke City 0-1 Liverpool - January 5, 2016 - Britannia Stadium
Klopp's men silenced the Britannia Stadium with the perfect away performance as they carved out a first-leg lead in the Potteries. Their resolve was firmly tested by injuries that forced the withdrawal of Philippe Coutinho and Dejan Lovren after 18 and 34 minutes respectively. But the former's replacement, Ibe, emerged as the match-winner, finishing off a lightning counter-attack with a left-footed half-volley. Stoke pushed on in the closing stages, launching the ball forward at every opportunity and testing the visiting centre-halves. But the Reds stood firm to take an advantage into the return fixture at Anfield.
Liverpool 0-1 Stoke City (AET), 6-5 on pens - January 26, 2016 - Anfield
Having been encouraged by an improved second-half performance on home turf, Stoke took a more physical approach to the second leg, naming Peter Crouch, Jon Walters and Marko Arnautovic as part of an imposing frontline. The hosts largely dealt well with that threat, but were undone by a quick counter right on the stroke of half-time that was finished off by Arnautovic, who appeared offside on replays. Liverpool looked a better side in the second period, but could not make their dominance count before extra-time. And they received something of a let-off when Marco van Ginkel sprinted into the Kop-end box and cracked a shot off the post.
The Reds went into the penalty shootout with history on their side, having won 13 out of 16 in all competitions. Two saves from Simon Mignolet and a cool final penalty from Joe Allen extended that incredible record, much to the delight of the fans, players, and of course the manager. Klopp commented after the game: "In the end, we had luck in the penalty shootout. Over the whole 120 minutes, the players, crowd and Liverpool deserved it. Wembley is a cool place to play football... but we go there to win. It's not much fun to lose."
