2024-25 Carabao Cup Final Preview

Guide to everything that you must know as Liverpool seek to defend their title against Newcastle United in the 2024-25 Carabao Cup Final.

Victory would see Liverpool claim a record-extending 11th title in this competition, whilst Newcastle seek a first title in this competition after they finished runner-up in 1975-76 and 2022-23 seasons.

 

Team News

Trent Alexander-Arnold is ruled out for Liverpool after he suffered an ankle injury in the Reds’ Champions League exit against PSG in midweek.

Conor Bradley (muscle) and Joe Gomez (hamstring) remain absent.

Newcastle have no fresh injury concerns to report following their Premier League victory at West Ham.

Anthony Gordon (suspension), Lewis Hall (foot), Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles (both knee) remain absent.

 

When is Kick-Off?

Liverpool meet Newcastle at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 16 March at 4:30pm GMT, live on ITV1 and Sky Sports in the UK.

 

Route to Final

Liverpool

Round	Opposition	Venue	Result
3	West Ham	H	5-1
4	Brighton	A	2-3
Quarter-Final	Southampton	A	1-2
Semi-Final (1)	Tottenham	A	1-0
Semi-Final (2)	Tottenham	H	4-0

Liverpool began this season’s competition at the third-round stage with a dominant 5-1 home win over West Ham, as Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo scored braces whilst Mohamed Salah netted their third goal of the match. #

Gakpo again scored twice in an eventual 3-2 fourth-round win at Brighton which was wrapped up by Luis Diaz in the 85th minute, despite Brighton’s Simon Adingra and Tariq Lamptey netting either side of the Colombian’s goal.

First-half goals from Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott wrapped up a 2-1 Quarter-Final victory at Southampton, despite Cameron Archer’s consolatory goal for the Saints.

Lucas Bergvall’s late effort saw Liverpool suffer a first-leg away defeat in the semi-final but Arne Slot’s Reds roared back at home in the second leg to win 4-1 on aggregate, with Gakpo, Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Virgil van Dijk on the scoresheet.

 

Newcastle

Round	Opposition	Venue	Result
2	Forest	A	1-1 (3-4)
3	AFC Wimbledon	H	1-0
4	Chelsea	H	2-0
Quarter-Final	Brentford	H	3-1
Semi-Final (1)	Arsenal	A	0-2
Semi-Final (2)	Arsenal	H	2-0

Newcastle prevailed 4-3 on penalties at Nottingham Forest upon entry in the second round after Joe Willock’s first-minute goal was cancelled out by Jota Silva.

Fabian Schar’s penalty sealed a narrow home win over AFC Wimbledon after the third-round tie was reversed due to on-pitch flooding at Cherry Red Records Stadium, before Alexander Isak’s effort and Axel Disasi’s own-goal ensured that the Magpies dispatched Chelsea in the fourth round.

Sandro Tonali’s brace and Fabian Schar’s second goal of this season’s tournament ensured a comfortable 3-1 Quarter-Final win over Brentford.

Isak and Anthony Gordon netted in a clinical semi-final first-leg display at Arsenal, before Gordon again netted in the return leg at home following Jacob Murphy’s opening goal, as Newcastle ran out 4-0 aggregate winners.

 

Stat Attack

• Liverpool have won one of two previous meetings against Newcastle in this competition (W1, L1).
• Newcastle won their only previous clash against Liverpool in this competition when played as the ‘away’ team, which saw them prevail 1-0 at Anfield in November 1995.
• The team who scored first in two previous meetings between Liverpool and Newcastle in this competition went on to win with a clean sheet.
• None of Liverpool’s last four appearances in the Final of this competition were finished in normal time – needing a penalty shootout in three of those four finals of which they won twice, whilst the other was won in extra-time last season.
• This is Newcastle’s first appearance in the final of this competition against a team outside of Manchester – having lost to Man City in 1976 then Man Utd in 2023.
• Liverpool have kept just one clean sheet en-route to this season’s final, which came in a 4-0 semi-final second-leg home win over Tottenham.
• Six of Newcastle’s 11 goals in this season’s Carabao Cup came from midfielders – as Sandro Tonali and Gordon scored twice each whilst Jacob Murphy and Joe Willock netted one goal apiece.

 

Prediction

Having seen their Champions League dreams ended by PSG on penalties following a tough physical encounter in midweek, Liverpool now must reset if they want a cup trophy to go alongside their inevitable league title and play with the composure and dominance that we know they can produce.

Newcastle though will be eager to end their 70-year barren run without a domestic cup title but were made to grind out a clinical win at West Ham, which might just stand them well because they must take their chances and be more composed than they had been at Anfield in a league meeting just a few weeks ago.

I however do think that Liverpool will ultimately have too much for Newcastle although the Magpies should cope better than they did two years ago.

Prediction: Liverpool 2-1 Newcastle

Result: Liverpool 1-2 Newcastle