We’ve reached the final four in the 2024/25 Carabao Cup with only Premier League clubs left standing.
Arsenal and Newcastle lock horns in one semi-final, while the other sees Tottenham face Liverpool. Here are five selections for the first leg of the latter tie which you can combine into a Bet Builder.
Tottenham v Liverpool Bet Builder tips
Liverpool to win
Over 3.5 goals
Cody Gakpo to score anytime
Over 11.5 corners
Over 4.5 cards
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 28/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
WHEN: Wednesday, 8th of January, 8:00pm
WHERE: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
TV: Sky Sports Main Event/Football
Liverpool to win
It’s only a little over two weeks since the Reds won 6-3 at Tottenham. Had they not declared at 5-1 up with half an hour left to play, it could have been much worse for Ange Postecoglou.
Even if Spurs had somehow managed to win that game (from the start, not from 5-1 down, obviously), the head-to-head record between these clubs still emphatically favours Liverpool.
Since Tottenham won 4-1 at Wembley in 2017, Liverpool have lost just once. That defeat needed an all-timer of a VAR error incorrectly ruling out Luis Diaz’s strike and an injury time Joel Matip own goal to happen too.
With Spurs’ heavy injury problems not helping, back Liverpool to win.
Over 3.5 goals
The first legs of EFL Cup semi-finals tend to be tight affairs, with neither side willing to cede an advantage ahead of the return game. One side failed to score in five of the last six such matches, with four of them seeing no more than two goals.
But that is simply not how these teams roll when they meet. Can they play a cagey game against each other?
You have to go back five years and 10 meetings to find the last clean sheet. Only one of the nine clashes since a 1-0 Liverpool win at Tottenham in January 2020, did not feature at least three goals, with the average up at a thrilling 4.6 per game.
We should therefore be safe for over 3.5 goals. It’ll probably be something mad like 4-2 at half time, for heaven’s sake.
Cody Gakpo to score anytime
It’s always hard to know which players will be selected in this competition. Mohamed Salah is in his eighth season at Liverpool, yet has only made eight appearances in the EFL Cup, with just four starts. While he perhaps will feature, a good bet in the goal scorer markets is Cody Gakpo.
Since the start of last season, he’s scored eight goals in the competition, at least two more than any other player. The Netherlands international has been a consistent threat too, finding the net in six of his nine Carabao sponsored matches.
He is also Liverpool’s most frequent grabber of non-penalty goals this term, back Gakpo to score any time.
Over 11.5 corners
With plenty of goalmouth action coming as guaranteed here, there should be corners galore too.
The league games at Tottenham this season have seen a ludicrously high average of 14.5, with games against West Ham, Fulham and Newcastle all featuring 18 or more.
Even quieter matches for corners in Spurs’ home matches have seen at least 10, while six of Liverpool’s nine fixtures on the road have gone one louder like Spinal Tap, and hit 11.
There were at least 12 in the last two meetings in North London and in three of the previous six overall. Over 11.5 corners looks a certainty.
Over 4.5 cards
Referees in the Carabao Cup semi-finals will explain VAR calls to the crowd, as part of a trial process. Could you pick a better match for this than one at the scene of Diaz’s wrongly disallowed goal last season?
If I were Stuart Attwell, I’d say ‘well done, boys, good process’ over the PA just for the lols. He will hope there’s no decisions anywhere near as controversial as that one to be made on Wednesday evening.
Whatever madness Stockley Park unleashes, Attwell will likely be busy with his notebook. Five of the last seven games between Spurs and Liverpool have seen at least five yellow cards, with an eight and a nine in there too. Open, counter attacking football leads to bookings, so expect there to be over 4.5 cards.
Tottenham v Liverpool betting tips
Liverpool to win
Over 3.5 goals
Cody Gakpo to score anytime
Over 11.5 corners
Over 4.5 cards
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 28/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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