Jurgen Klopp Threatens to Take Liverpool Out of Carabao Cup Due to Exhausting Winter Schedule

Jurgen Klopp has said his side will not be able to play their Carabao Cup quarter-final tie unless the fixture dates are changed to accommodate Liverpool's appearance in the FIFA Club World Cup.

The quarter-finals are due to be played the week commencing 16 December. However, this will clash with the Reds' inclusion in the Club World Cup, as they will be making the 7,000-mile round trip to Qatar to play in the semi-finals just two days later.

WHAT. A. GAME. 

1️⃣-0️⃣ (6' OG)
1️⃣-1️⃣ (19' Torreira)
1️⃣-2️⃣ (26' Martinelli)
1️⃣-3️⃣ (36' Martinelli)
2️⃣-3️⃣ (43' Milner)
2️⃣-4️⃣ (54' Maitland-Niles)
3️⃣-4️⃣ (58' Oxlade-Chamberlain)
4️⃣-4️⃣ (62' Origi)
4️⃣-5️⃣ (70' Wilock)
5️⃣-5️⃣ (90+4' Origi)

聾⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️ pic.twitter.com/MZ3dZ557Co
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) October 30, 2019

Liverpool reached the quarter-final stage of the Carabao Cup with a penalty shootout victory over Arsenal on Wednesday night, having come from behind on three occasions to force spot-kicks after an utterly bonkers 5-5 scoreline. Teenager and local boy Curtis Jones scored the winning penalty on the night, to ensure the Reds' passage into the next round, but Klopp declared his side won't play the match unless the fixture can be rearranged for another date.

"If they don't find a place for us, an appropriate place, not 3am on Christmas Day, then we don't play it," said Klopp after the game, via the BBC.

"You have to think about these things. If you have a fixture list where one team cannot be part of all the games, then you have to think about it. Hopefully it starts at one point, hopefully it starts now."

Origi's injury time equaliser sends the side through to a penalty shootout that is more than likely going to be less high scoring than the game itself. . .😅#LIVARS pic.twitter.com/8OwCjnM95t
— 90min (@90min_Football) October 30, 2019

It's set to be a testing December period for Klopp's side already, with seven matches scheduled for the month, as well as a Carabao Cup quarter-final and either the final of the Club World Cup or third-fourth play-off.

Such is the congestion of the month that there are no midweek slots available in 2019 other than international breaks, meaning the next feasible opportunity to play would be the turn of the year, between 11-19 January when there are no midweek Premier League games. Klopp even suggested giving the victory to Arsenal, as he calls on the authorities to find a solution.

He added: "We will not be the victim of this problem, we played [on Wednesday] and we wanted to win. If they don't find a proper date for us then we cannot play the next round and whoever is our opponent will go through - or Arsenal will play it. I cannot change that."

Source : 90min