Good afternoon, Alan Tyers here, welcome to our live blog of the Carabao Cup Final between Chelsea and Liverpool. Kick off is at 3pm but we will have plenty of time and space for the build-up between now and then. We will be getting updates throughout the afternoon from our man Thom Gibbs at Wembley, and we will have all the gossip, scene-setting and team news that you need.
The managers will name their lineups sometime around 2pm, and it is certainly a huge day for both of these likeable gaffers. Mauricio Pochettino seeks his first trophy as Chelsea manager, and many of the experts are saying that he needs to put something on the Stamford Bridge mantelpiece sooner rather than later. The man in the opposite dugout, Jurgen Klopp, has of course delivered multiple trophies (I make it seven at Liverpool), including this competition in 2021-2022. That was one of Liverpool’s NINE successes in this event. Chelsea have won it five times themselves so there is plenty of pedigree.
Here is Poch: “When you plant a seed you don’t see results at the start but it begins to grow. That is the process of all new teams – to build this competitive spirit. Winning titles will be a good way to arrive at this capacity of competing well. Being second is the worst thing in the world. We are going to build the players’ careers and our careers by winning trophies.”
Whether the people who run the club and its supporters are up for this long-term nurturing remains to be seen. Clearly being the victors today would buy him plenty of time and good will.