Liverpool fans always hoped to see their side lift silverware this season, but when Jürgen Klopp announced his decision to step down as manager at the end of the current campaign, winning titles became even more important.
The German is beloved in Merseyside, after eight glorious seasons in charge, and supporters were keen to see him go out with a bang. So it was just as well the club secured the first trophy available to them this year, just a few weeks after Klopp's January announcement.
Liverpool defeated Chelsea 1-0 in the 2024 League Cup Final thanks to a 118th-minute header from skipper Virgil van Dijk, after Klopp had sent on a clutch of academy products and youngsters against their expensively assembled opponents. They finished the match with an average age of just 24.1, and Reds legend Jamie Carragher believes it was one of the greatest wins of Klopp's reign.
"I was so proud of that team," Carragher tells FourFourTwo now. "That was one of the best trophy wins under Klopp. The bravery of Jürgen to bring those kids on before extra-time was something special.
"To beat Chelsea, who’ve been a rival for a long time and almost our opposite with Liverpool being the old establishment and Chelsea being nouveau riche, was massive, particularly given the money they’ve spent under Todd Boehly. Watching Liverpool win that day, you felt very proud. If Liverpool had lost that, it would’ve put a lot more pressure on winning another trophy this season."
For former Reds striker Ian Rush, the win reaffirmed what a fantastic man-manager Klopp has been since taking charge of the club in October 2015.
"It comes down to man-management and that Klopp was brave enough to play them in a final," the Welshman says. "They didn’t let him down. It’s a huge thing to play at Wembley when you’re young.
Rush knows than most how much a title early in a player's development can shape the rest of their career.
"In only my second game for Liverpool, I played in the League Cup final replay and we won, beating West Ham," he recalls. "Winning a trophy at such a young age
gives you that confidence. This current crop will feel that way – they have a medal to their name already. Klopp gave them the platform to go on and do better things."
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West Ham have emerged as a rival to lure Ruben Amorim to the Premier League, while Gary O'Neil has been linked with the Reds job.
Viktor Gyokeres has been linked and a Bundesliga centre-back is in the crosshairs. A Serie A star is being linked, Joachim Andersen has been tipped to move and another Bundesliga star is wanted. Meanwhile, This Is Anfield has suggested that Klopp's exit from the Reds could be “timely”.
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