Arsenal vs Liverpool League Cup semi-final 1st leg postponed due to Covid-19 outbreak

Liverpool’s League Cup semi-final first leg match against Arsenal has been postponed due to a severe outbreak of Covid-19 infections at Liverpool, the English Football League (EFL) said. The first of the two legs will now take place at Anfield on Jan. 13, while the rearranged game will be played as the second leg at the Emirates on Jan. 20.

Notably, Liverpool had requested the first leg be called off after a Covid-19 outbreak forced their squad to be sent home from training on Tuesday before the club shut their AXA Training Centre down on Wednesday.

Our Carabao Cup semi-final, first-leg fixture with Arsenal on Thursday has been postponed.

We would like to place on record our thanks to the EFL and Arsenal for their understanding, as well as supporters of both clubs, as we continue to navigate through this challenging period.

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 5, 2022

“The first leg of the Carabao (League) Cup semi-final between Arsenal and Liverpool scheduled for Thursday 6 January 2022 has been postponed following a formal request by Liverpool due to a severe outbreak of COVID infections amongst their management and playing staff,” the EFL said in a statement.

“The EFL has been in regular dialogue with the club over the past 48 hours in an attempt to understand whether the tie could proceed but significant developments over this period have resulted in the Club reporting an ever-increasing number of COVID cases.”

As a result of the postponement, the order of the ties has been changed with the first of the two legs now taking place at Anfield on Jan. 13, while the rearranged game will be played as the second leg at the Emirates on Jan. 20.

Liverpool players Alisson Becker, Roberto Firmino and Joel Matip returned positive tests on Sunday, while manager Juergen Klopp tested positive at the weekend.

Also Read | EPL: Antonio Conte lauds Harry Kane’s ‘total commitment’ to Tottenham Hotspur after Man City transfer saga