The ECHO's verdict from Anfield as Liverpool beat Chelsea 6-5 on penalties to reach the Carabao Cup quarter-finals

Oh how Chelsea must loathe cup shootouts with Liverpool. After the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals of 2022 were settled the Reds' way via spot-kicks, a new chapter was added here at Anfield as Andoni Iraola's side secured their place in the quarter-finals with a 6-5 win on penalties.

It was a night to forget for Wesley Fofana who conceded the penalty that gave Liverpool their equaliser, before the former Leicester City defender shanked the all-important spot kick after Joe Gomezhad made a mockery of his 280 games without a goal, by dispatching his with the sort of panache possessed by top strikers.

Gomez later revealed he had never taken a penalty in his career, which was even more difficult to believe given the way he confidently slotted home from 12 yards.

OPINION

It was no coincidence then that the song booming around Anfield as the fans began to shuffle out was Felix Jaehn's 'Ain't Nobody (Loves Me Better)', which match-goers have long since adopted as their ode to the likeable Gomez.

With Arsenal to come in the Premier League on Sunday, this was not the biggest assignment of the week and Iraola's team sheet telegraphed that fact as Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Bradley Barcola were left in reserve alongside Jeremy Jacquet and Alisson Becker. At £552m, it was the most expensive subs bench in Liverpool's history.

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And in truth, had Emmanuel Emegha taken the chance to send Chelsea home as the winners, there would have been few inquests and little sleep lost. But Iraola is slowly restoring some personality to this squad and they no longer wilt in the face of adversity or drop their shoulders when setbacks hit them.

That, in what is still a relatively short period of time, is hugely impressive from Iraola, particularly as he continues to work out the more tactical and technical kinks to his overall strategy.

The Reds started as the more aggressive and intense of the two sides, winning almost every individual battle but goalkeeper Mike Penders remained untested before the match finally kicked into gear in the final throes of the first half.

Ryan Gravenberch's clumsy challenge on Moises Caicedo gave referee Darren England no choice but to point to the spot. And after legendary former Reds captain Jordan Henderson was mercilessly booed for carrying the ball towards the centre circle, Morgan Rogers rolled it home past Giorgi Mamardashvili, who was one of seven changes.

Liverpool were awarded a spot kick of their own three minutes later when Fofana handled from a corner and Cody Gakpo made no mistake. It was the Dutchman's 11th goal in 14 League Cup fixtures.

It was a first half full of endeavour and intent but the absence of Florian Wirtz saw young James McConnell fill in in the most advanced midfield position.

It was an inconclusive experiment that only highlighted the lack of real backup or competition for the £116m Wirtz. Gravenberch also struggled to make a telling impact when played there last week against Villarreal in the Champions League.

An entertaining second half saw both teams throw caution to the wind and Mamardashvili made an expert stop from substitute Marco Palestra. The imposing Ronald Araujo, excellent once more, was denied up the other end by Penders from Gomez's cross.

Iraola sent on Wirtz, Barcola and then Isak in an attempt to avoid penalties but the script had already been written. It looked like Kostas Tsimikas was set to reprise his role as the hero from the 2022 FA Cup final but he clipped it into the Kop with the chance to send Liverpool through.

He needn't have worried, Fofana completed his own miserable night when he clanged one against the post. The players' immediate beeline for Mamardashvili, who saved Emegha's effort, showed how delighted they were for their No.2 goalkeeper.

The giant Georgian will likely one day have the unenviable task of following on from Alisson Becker here and while he remains a work in progress, he has been vital to a side that is now staring at a quarter-final tie in this competition.

And who knows from here on in? With Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion all out of the running, perhaps only Manchester City will consider themselves to have a greater chance of going the distance in this tournament.

Another favourable home draw, this time to Bournemouth in the last eight, means Iraola will fancy his chances of a semi-final appearance inside his first few months on Merseyside. The prospect of that is another pointer to the progress being made by the Basque coach.

But while there was a certain level of schadenfreude to be extracted from both Xabi Alonso and Henderson coming back to this part of Merseyside to end up on the losing side, the feel-good nature of this victory will only linger until Sunday, when champions Arsenal pitch up in search of their first win here since 2012.

How Liverpool stand up to Mikel Arteta's men will offer the biggest clue yet as to how far along they really are under this new regime. But the signs are encouraging, there is no doubt.

For now though, the head coach and players at least get to bask in a victory they took immense satisfaction from. A trip to Wembley is now only two ties away.