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LIVERPOOL have pipped Fulham to a marginal victory in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final – but it is far from a foregone conclusion.Willian’s low-driven strike had initially put the visitors in front.
But Curtis Jones’ deflected strike followed by Cody Gakpo’s effort has made it an interesting spectacle in the return leg

RESULT: Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
Live stream: NOW TV
TV channel: Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football
Liverpool XI: Kelleher, Gomez, Van Dijk, Konate, Diaz, Mac Allister, Jones, Elliott, Jota, Gravenberch, Bradley.
Fulham XI: Leno, Castagne, Tosin, Diop, Robinson, Palhinha, De Cordova-Reid, Andreas, Willian, Jimenez.

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Klopp’s Reds with some breathing space
Liverpool do not play again for 11 days, giving the German manager chance to let his players rest.
They will be working hard to get some of their injured players back to full fitness also.
The Reds’ next league game is on January 21 away to Bournemouth.
Klopp’s side will play the second leg of this Carabao Cup semi-final on January 24 at Craven Cottage.
Ally Mac making sweet music
Alexis Mac Allister came back into the team today and was integral with Liverpool’s win.
With Dominik Szoboszlai missing, the Argentinian tried to link the defence and attack.
Mac Allister has shown the Anfield faithful just how much he has to offer to this midfield today.

Young gun proves his worth
Conor Bradley probably did not expect to get many chances at right back this season, given that Trent Alexander Arnold is his competition.
When called upon today, the young full back put in a brilliant performance, getting forward as often as possible.
In addition to this, he had to deal with the experienced Willian down the left also.
The boss seemed pleased at full time with Bradley.

View from SunSport’s Ken Lawrence
You can see why Jurgen Klopp likes Darwen Nunez – for starters the Uruguyan also has that slightly demonic glint in his eye.
Nunez may not exactly be an Erling Halland when it comes to finishing but he has a certain energy that his team mates feed off.
Just like here in what could have been a bad night for his manager.
He didn’t score (again) but once he arrived on the scene the big striker lit a fire that burned through Fulham’s resistance.
The Cottagers head home still with hope for a second leg fightback, but by the end they were intent only on damage limitation after Nunez stole centre stage.
FT: Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
It was a much-improved performance from Liverpool in the second half after a drab start to the game.
Having only registered a single shot on target, they added another six after the interval.
More importantly, the broke down the stubborn resistance from The Cottagers.

FT: Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
The referee brings the game to a close.
Liverpool take a slender lead to Craven Cottage.
Having been a goal down for so long, the fans will take this.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
90+4. Robinson checks inside Bradley and is brought to ground.
Chance for Fulham to look for a late equaliser.
Wilson looks to whip it in but it is easily cleared.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
90+2. Liverpool are patiently building play.
Trying to find a way to breakdown this Fulham defence one more time.
The visitors have everyone bar Jimenez behind the ball now.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
90. Bradley puts a brilliant cross into the box.
Nunez meets it and half the ground thinks he has scored but Leno makes a fantastic save with his feet.
That could prove to be an important stop in the context of this tie from the Fulham keeper.
We are going to have an additional four minutes.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
88. Fulham are not offering anything in terms of an attacking threat currently.
They have everyone behind the ball when Liverpool are in possession.
Lukic is shown a yellow card for a challenge on Darwin Nunez.
Credit: Getty
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
86. Jones seems to be struggling for Liverpool, having picked up a knock.
Nunez is stretching the Fulham defensive line constantly.
The visitors will be focussed on not conceding another goal before the full times whistle now.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
84. Gakpo comes forward and feigns a shot, to see the defender go sliding past him.
He feeds it into the path of Nunez, who fires a shot off at goal.
Albeit from a tight angle, he forces another instinctive save from Leno.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
82. Fulham would have probably taken this scoreline before the game.
Silva will not be happy given the position they got themselves into but rarely is the manager in a positive mood.
Lukic comes on for Reed for the visitors.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
80. A cross is whipped in and Nunez heads it towards goal.
Leno is forced to tip it over the bar with an elaborate save.
The corner is not dealt with and Diaz picks it up but his attempted cross is blocked and Fulham bring it clear.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
78. Nunez does well to hold the ball up.
Bradley comes steaming forward once again.
Gakpo plays it back to the Uruguayan and he looks to drill it across goal from the byline.
Fulham manage to hack the ball clear.
Credit: Reuters
View from SunSport’s Ken Lawrence
Jurgen Klopp’s No 2 Pep Lijnders always seems like he is trying to give an extra dimension to the meaning of positivity when his master is not using his voice.
He declared that while magic Mo is away with Egypt and Alexander-Arnold is recovering from a knee injury “no one is irreplaceable”.
Yet the Kop were wishing the duo were  very much in their places for Salah was not around to frighten the Fulham defence, while frantic Liverpool were so badly missing the passing, prompting and presence of TAA.
Nunez, as expected, appears, along with Cody Gakpo in exchange for Harvey Elliott and Ryan Gravenberch.
The dynamic, slowly but surely, starts to change and Curtis Jones produces the one example of pure quality so far with a brilliant strike from distance.
Suddenly Kop gears are clicking, Gakpo coming up with the sweetest of finishes as sweet music now cascades around the ground – well most of it, anyway.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
76. Liverpool look hungry for more goals here.
Fulham looked in control until Jones’ deflected effort.
Now they look capable of scoring every time they come forward.
Say what you like about Nunez’s finishing but he makes things happen when he is on the pitch for The Reds.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
74. Wilson and Cairney come on for the visitors.
They replace Willian and Pereira.
Bradley plays a neat one-two and wins a free kick on the edge of the box as De Cordova-Reid brings him down.
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
72. Jota holds the ball up before slotting it to Nunez.
He spots Gakpo and cuts it back from the byline to him.
The Dutch youngster sweeps the ball home to turn this game on its head.
Goal – Cody Gakpo (Liverpool)
Liverpool 1-1 Fulham
70. The ball breaks to Jones outside the box who tries his luck.
Tosin turns his back on the shot and it deflects off his back and loops up over Leno and into the goal.
Anfield erupts as they finally get the goal they have been craving.
Credit: AFP
Goal – Curtis Jones (Liverpool)
Liverpool 0-1 Fulham
68. As the free kick comes in Robinson tries to head clear.
He misses the ball with head completely and it strikes his arm.
The Liverpool players and fans call for a penalty but the referee is not interested at all.
Had VAR been in play, I think they would have been asking the referee to go to the monitor there.
Liverpool 0-1 Fulham
66. Bradley is scythed down by Palhinha on the edge of the box.
The Liverpool youngster is having a good game today.
Big chance for The Reds to make the visitors pay now.
Liverpool 0-1 Fulham
64. Jones runs towards the penalty area but Palhinha puts in a perfectly-timed challenge.
Diaz picks up the loose ball but is hacked down by De Cordova-Reid.
The Fulham player is shown a yellow card for the challenge. More

CHELSEA have been STUNNED as Middlesbrough have pipped them to a marginal 1-0 victory in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final.Riverside erupted after Hayden Hackney put his side in front following a sublime team goal.
But Michael Carrick’s men still have plenty to do for the return leg at Stamford Bridge.

RESULT: Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
Live stream: NOW TV
TV channel: Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football
Middlesbrough XI: Glover, van den Berg, Fry, Engel, Jones, Howson, Barlaser, Hackney, Bangura, Crooks, Latte Lath
Chelsea XI: Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Thiago Silva, Colwill; Enzo, Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Sterling 
Explainer: Who is in the other semi-final?

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That’s all from the Riverside
But, thankfully for Chelsea, it’s not the end of the tie.
The Blues will have to be much better in the second leg at Stamford Bridge in two weeks if they are to overturn this one-goal deficit – and they will need to learn how to put the ball in the back of the net.
Depleted Middlesbrough were excellent throughout, soaking up large spells of pressure and then punishing their Premier League visitors on the counter.
Michael Carrick’s men are more than in this semi-final at the halfway stage, and can head into the return fixture full of belief with Wembley just 90 minutes away.
Thanks for joining us, and goodnight.

Poch: We made mistakes
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino insisted his side’s approach was the right one tonight, but they were simply punished by some mistakes at either end of the pitch.
The Argentine remains confident that his team will turn around the deficit during the second leg on home soil.
The approach was good. I think we made some mistakes. I think we gave them chances to score, and then they were really tough. They played in transition with a low block. Still, we had many chances to score but we didn’t. We have another 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge and we need to be positive.Mauricio PochettinoSky Sports

Sterling struggles with another semi
Some of the fiercest Chelsea criticism this evening is being directed at Raheem Sterling, who struggled to make an impact against Championship opposition.
By failing to find the net, it means that the forward’s run without scoring in a semi-final extends to 21 such matches.
Credit: @Squawka Twitter

Harsh throwback for upset Blues
It’s been a quarter of a century since Chelsea last lost a League Cup game inside 90 minutes to a lower division side.
In other words, it was pre-Abramovich.
Credit: @SkySportsStatto Twitter
Match stats from the Riverside
Defeat for Chelsea who had 18 shots, 72% possession and what felt like 250 crosses that went straight out of play.

Full time – Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
Advantage Middlesbrough!
Hayden Hackney’s first half goal means that the Championship club will take a 1-0 lead to London for the second leg in a fortnight.
Chelsea huffed, Chelsea puffed, but did so little that their lower-level hosts were comfortable.
It’s a point not lost on the travelling fans either. As the home fans celebrate, the visiting section are letting their players know exactly what they think.
Thiago Silva heads over in an attempt to appease the booing Blues, but something seems seriously amiss with the Stamford Bridge club.

Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
90+4. A final chance of the evening is headed into the side netting by substitute Alfie Gilchrist.
It took a nick so leads to a corner, but Fry, Clark and Engel are up to the task, just as they have been all evening.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea – Jones yellow card
90+2. Middlesbrough’s Isiah Jones is cautioned for time wasting over a throw-in on the near side.
If we’re truly talking time wasting, then the whole Chelsea squad should go into the book.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
90. There’s a few seconds respite for Middlesbrough as Matt Crooks receives treatment after rolling his ankle.
It’s the cue for the fourth official to hold up the board that shows there will be four minutes of additional time.
The Riverside Stadium is as loud as it’s been tonight.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
88. The Middlesbrough defence are standing tall to everything that’s been thrown at them.
A Clark header out. A Fry volley clear. Clark again when Chelsea return with another centre.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
86. We have a late new entry for worst cross of the evening, and it’s straight in at number one.
Stand up, Conor Gallagher.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
85. Five minutes remain on the night, 95 to go in the tie.
Middlesbrough lead by a single goal, and it’s all getting a little frantic as they try to protect it.
It’s a sea of red bodies as Gallagher lines up an effort, one that is bravely blocked at close quarters.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
83. A Chelsea corner leads to some pinball inside the Middlesbrough six-yard box but before anyone in blue can pounce, Jonny Howson emerges to thump to safety.
A captain’s contribution.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
81. And it almost does!
Broja comes left to finally involve himself, and then offers a directness that has been lacking from Chelsea tonight.
The Albanian cuts back inside and then out again before sending a cross-shot towards the far post.
It evades the outstretched arm of Glover – but also the outstretched leg of Sterling.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
79. Armando Broja has only touched the ball five times since coming on – and still looks a bigger threat than Mudryk.
If only Chelsea could get the ball to him, then something may happen.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
77. The home fans raise the noise levels for one last push.
The Middlesbrough supporters have put in as big a shift as their players tonight.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
75. Chelsea have had 75% of possession in the second half, but only recorded five attempts at goal.
Thanks heavens the transfer window is open, and Todd Boehly can put all this right…
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
73. Since he came on 13 minutes ago, Mudryk has specialised in dribbling the ball straight into opponents.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
71. You know things are bad when even Thiago Silva is making mistakes.
The Brazilian legend slips over on the wet surface as Boro launch their latest counter, and it momentarily lets Coburn through on goal.
The youngster doesn’t have the pace to outstrip the 39-year-old, however, and Silva soon gets back to push him off the ball.
There was the option for Coburn to slip in Crooks, but opted against it thinking his teammate was offside.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea 
70. Bizarrely, that double Chelsea change seems to have spurred a new lease of life into Middlesbrough.
The Blues look even more toothless than they did before.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
68. For a side that has spent so much of the second half defending, Middlesbrough love to get numbers forward when the opportunity presents itself.
A corner follows that last counter, and shortly afterwards Barlaser takes aim with a rising blaster from 25 yards out. Over.

Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea 

66. No, Boro still have the will and ability to attack!
Coburn does very well to hold up play, and then brings in Crooks, who releases Jones.
The winger drives into the penalty area and goes searching for former Rangers man Crooks at the far post.
However, this time Jones gets his delivery wrong, sending the low centre behind his teammate.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
65. Middlesbrough have dropped very, very deep.
As Chelsea probe forward again, the hosts have nine players back inside their own penalty area.
Are they happy to protect their one-goal lead?
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea – Chelsea double substitution
63. Here we go!
The electronic board goes up and it’s the end of the night for Enzo Fernandez and Noni Madueke.
Mauricio Pochettino has sent for Mykhailo Mudryk and Armando Broja.
“What a waste of money!” rings around the Riverside Stadium. Take your pick at who that’s aimed at.
Middlesbrough 1-0 Chelsea
61. Gallagher works a half-chance for himself, controlling a cross from right and acrobatically spinning in one movement while falling backwards.
Mid-breakdance, the Chelsea captain gets a shot away that veers wide of the far post. More