Diogo Jota scored twice to book Liverpool’s place in the EFL Cup Final at the expense of Arsenal. The two sides played out a 0-0 draw in the first leg, but Jota’s goals – one in each half – decided the tie in normal time of the second leg.
Liverpool will meet Chelsea in the EFL Cup Final on February 27 – the Reds have booked their place in the final by beating Arsenal 2-0 in the semi-final second leg. The Portuguese scored twice at the Emirates, once on either side of the break, while Thomas Partey saw a red card in the last minutes of the match.
Jota scored the opening goal in the 19th minute. The attacker had drifted out to the left flank and, upon receiving the ball, began his run inside towards the central channels. He held off Takehiro Tomiyasu’s challenge and lined up a shot from just outside the box. Seeing Jota run towards his box, Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale had decided, curiously, to step out of his line prematurely, which meant he was out of position as Jota’s weak shot squirmed past him into the net.
Arsenal had a chance to equalize in the early minutes of the second half. Alexandre Lacazette ghosted in behind the Liverpool defence – and latched onto a long pass. However, recognizing the imminent danger, Andrew Robertson quickly ran back to apply pressure onto Lacazette, forcing the Frenchman to lift his ball over the bar from a good position.
At the other end, Liverpool’s teenage attacker Kaide Gordon spurned an even better opportunity to put his team two goals up as he failed to keep his shot on target from close range after receiving the pass from Jota.
Diogo Jota has now scored six goals against Arsenal, against no other side has he scored more:
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 20, 2022
◉ 6 vs Arsenal
◉ 6 vs Leicester
He just loves playing the Gunners. ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/iOnFsSDTDo
Liverpool effectively secured the win in the 77th minute; Trent Alexander-Arnold picked out Jota running beyond the Arsenal backline with a sensational pass, which the attacker brought down with his chest and lifted over Ramsdale.
Things got worse for the Gunners in the 90th minute when Partey, only just back from AFCON, received his second yellow card, meaning his side would finish the game with ten men.
Partey’s sending off allowed Liverpool to control the game better in its last moments – and book their place in the cup final next month alongside Chelsea.
