Liverpool beat Chelsea 6-5 on penalties to reach League Cup quarterfinals

Liverpool beat Chelsea 6-5 in a dramatic penalty shootout to reach the English League Cup quarterfinals.

Key points

• Ryan Gravenberch was denied by Chelsea keeper Mike Penders, but Giorgi Mamardashvili saved Emmanuel Emegha's kick to keep Liverpool alive.
• After Joe Gomez scored for Liverpool, Blues defender Wesley Fofana miscued into the Kop as the hosts advanced.
• Rogers put Chelsea in front with a 40th-minute penalty after Gravenberch clattered into Moises Caicedo.
• Chelsea's Valentin Barco hit the post in the shootout before Liverpool's Kostas Tsimikas wasted a chance to win it when he blazed over.
• But Liverpool were level three minutes afterwards with a penalty of their own as Gakpo converted from the spot after Fofana's handball.

In a clash between childhood friends Andoni Iraola and Xabi Alonso, it was the Liverpool manager who took the bragging rights in the last-16 tie at Anfield on Wednesday.

For context, a 1-1 draw in normal time set the stage for the shootout as Chelsea's Morgan Rogers netted from the spot, only for Cody Gakpo to equalise with a penalty of his own just before half-time.

After losses with Bayer Leverkusen in 2024 and Real Madrid in 2025, it was former Liverpool midfielder Alonso's third defeat in his three visits to Anfield as a manager.

In their debut campaigns at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp and Arne Slot both reached the League Cup final, and Iraola is on course to follow in their footsteps with the 10-time winners of the competition.

"We are really happy. Three wins at home in a row is particularly notable. We were struggling at home in the league but now we go against Arsenal on Sunday, " remarked Iraola. This person will face his former club Bournemouth in the last eight.

Alonso continued: Every time you reach the penalties, someone will feel it is harsh to go out of the competition.

"We were showing a good level and this is what it takes to come to these stadiums. The Premier League is the main focus."

While Iraola produced seven changes from Liverpool's 2-0 win against Brighton on Sunday, alonso created just four changes to the Chelsea side that lost 2-0 at home to Tottenham on Saturday.

Taken together, the developments around liverpool beat Chelsea 6-5 on penalties to reach League Cup quarterfinals point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.