Crystal Palace stunned a youthful Liverpool side with a dominant 3-0 win at Anfield to book their place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals. Two first-half goals from Ismaila Sarr and a late strike from Yeremy Pino secured the victory, deepening the Reds' current crisis under Arne Slot. The defeat means Liverpool have now lost six of their last seven matches across all competitions, including the recent Premier League loss to Brentford, as reported by Softfootball .
Arne Slot made ten changes to his team, starting three teenagers and leaving out key players such as Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk. The decision came as Liverpool continued their tradition of using this competition to give opportunities to young players, as reported by Softfootball . However, the inexperience showed, as Palace took full advantage of a fragile defense and low confidence to cruise past the Reds on a rain-soaked night in Merseyside.
After a bright opening from the hosts, Palace struck first when Joe Gomez's error allowed Sarr to fire into the bottom corner. The Senegal forward doubled the lead before half-time, combining beautifully with Yeremy Pino to leave debutant goalkeeper Freddie Woodman helpless. The young keeper, along with Kieran Morrison and Wellity Lucky, all made their Liverpool debuts, but the night was one to forget for Slot's experimental side.