Liverpool travel to Southampton for the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final at the St Mary's on Wednesday, 11 January.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is set for 7:45pm GMT. Live coverage of the game will be on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 1 HD.

Overview

Southampton will be without captain Jose Fonte and midfielder Sofiane Boufal for the clash against Liverpool under controversial circumstances. Fonte had put in a transfer request and manager Claude Puel has confirmed that he will not be part of the squad for the first leg but may be considered for the second if things improve on that front.

Boufal has pulled out of the African Nations Cup due to a knee injury and will be unavailable for the next few weeks. Charlie Austin, Matt Targett, Cedric Soares and Alex McCarthy all remain sidelined.

Liverpool will welcome back Philippe Coutinho to the squad after the Brazilian was absent last month owing to an ankle injury. He is expected to be eased into the squad and will start from the bench if he is deemed fit enough to play.

Jordan Henderson is set to resume first team training on Thursday but Joel Matip is expected to be back in the squad as he looks to build his fitness ahead of their trip to Old Trafford next Sunday. Jurgen Klopp is expected to field his full team for the game, having made wholesale changes for their FA Cup fixture against Plymouth last weekend. Loris Karius could keep his position in goal as he looks to return to the first team in the Premier League.

Philippe Coutinho
Philippe Coutinho has recovered from the ankle he suffered against Sunderland in November Getty

What Managers Say

Claudio Puel: "We played Liverpool in the Premier League and it was a strong game for us with organisation. We played strong and were strong in defence. We played at a good level but it will be important for this game to have more of the ball and try and have control of the game. Their ability to control the ball along with good pressing, with technical players, is exciting. We want to exploit them. The players are ready for the game. It is an exciting challenge for us. The Premier League game was strong, there are many games in January, different possibilities. This game is important and I think my players are ready for the game." via the Mirror.

Jurgen Klopp: "Wednesday will see the best team we can line up. If you ask for a rating in England the League Cup is third but while you are still in it it is the most important cup. If you win and it is wonderful with the youngest line-up ever. After the game it is the easiest job for you to ask 'Why did you make all these changes?'. The question I asked this morning in the dressing room was 'Could we have done better? 100 per cent yes with this line-up. I don't expect perfection but I have high expectations because I see them every day in training and I was convinced we could play really well." via the Liverpool Echo

Betting Odds (betfair)

  • Southampton win: 5/2
  • Draw: 5/2
  • Liverpool win: 5/4

Team News

Southampton

Possible XI: Forster; Martinez, Yoshids, Van Dijk, Bertrand; Romeu, Ward-Prowse, Rodriguez; Davis, Long, Redmond

Liverpool

Possible XI: Mignolet; Clyne, Klavan, Lovren, Milner; Lallana, Henderson, Wijnaldum; Mane, Firmino, Origi.

Southampton FC Liverpool FC