EFL Cup: Are Bournemouth Capable of Turning the Tables Against Liverpool?

Bournemouth vs Liverpool

Bournemouth are aiming to pull off a massive scalp when they return to the Vitality Stadium for their fourth round EFL Cup matchup.

The Cherries come into this contest with some momentum after they just got their first Premier League win of the season, a 2-1 result against Burnley, to pull themselves out of the relegation scrap, at least for now.

However, getting a positive result against visitors Liverpool is quite a daunting task for Andoni Iraola’s men, as the Reds have already beaten them convincingly earlier this year.

Compared to Bournemouth, Liverpool are way above them in the Premier League standings, sitting in fourth place, and they are on a five-game undefeated run.

The winner of this contest advances to the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup, so who will get it on Wednesday night?

Talking Points

Iraola bought himself some time

Bournemouth finally ended their winless run this season, which was a huge sigh of relief for Andoni Iraola amid sacking murmurs. Prior to the victory, Iraola was tipped to be a managerial sack odds favourite alongside Paul Heckingbottom, given his horrific start.

It looked like Bournemouth were in huge trouble after Charlie Taylor put Burnley up 1-0 after the first 11 minutes, but they responded when Antoine Semenyo stole the ball from Taylor and fired a low finish for the equaliser.

Phillip Billing then put the Cherries up 2-1 when he spotted Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford off his line and launched a long-range lob beautifully.

Substitute Jay Rodriguez thought he leveled the game for Burnley when he found the back of the net in the second half, but his effort was ruled out by the VAR, which clearly didn’t amuse their manager, Vincent Kompany.

Bournemouth held on, much to the delight of Bill Foley, their owner, watching in the stands. The positive result certainly goes a long way toward easing some of the pressure on the former Rayo Vallecano head coach.

While Semenyo and Billing were the heroes against the Clarets, the Cherries’ real threat for the Reds on Wednesday is Dominic Solanke. The 26-year-old is Bournemouth’s top scorer with five goals.

On the other hand, Inter Milan loanee Andrei Radu will have his hands full against Liverpool on Wednesday since first-choice goalkeeper Neto is still dealing with a foot injury.

Liverpool drawing inspiration from Diaz

Liverpool did make good of the betting advice of my SBOTOP colleague in his match preview of their game against Nottingham Forest, as the Reds found the back of the net three times en route to a 3-0 victory.

Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez, and Mohamed Salah had one goal each in a somber afternoon at Anfield, following the unfortunate EFL Cup 2023 news about the kidnapping of Luis Diaz’s dad.

Jota hoisting up Diaz’s jersey after he scored was a heartwarming moment for the Reds. And for sure, that should give them enough motivation ahead of this Wednesday contest.

History

These two teams already met earlier this season, when Liverpool pummeled Bournemouth 3-1 at Anfield.

The Cherries were up 1-0 when Antoine Semenyo scored the game’s first goal after the first three minutes. However, Luis Diaz, Mohamed Salah, and Diogo Jota managed to win the game with goals of their own, even if they were reduced to 10 men after Alexis Mac Allister’s red card.

Mac Allister was supposed to be given a three-game ban, but it was eventually overturned by the English FA, especially when Andoni Iraola said that the World Cup winner didn’t deserve it in the first place.

Liverpool were the winners of the 2022 EFL Cup, but their title defence was ended by Manchester City in the fourth round. Manchester United eventually won it all last season, ending their six-year trophy drought.

As for Bournemouth, they had previously gotten as far as the quarter-finals in both the 2017-18 and 2018-19 editions of this competition before losing to Chelsea both times.

Betting Tip

To answer the question posed in the article title, it’s a no. The EFL Cup 2023 odds unsurprisingly favour Liverpool to win on Wednesday evening, as the Reds are priced at 1.48, whereas Bournemouth are at 4.80 odds, and a draw is at 4.20 in the 1X2 market.

Even with a rotated squad, Liverpool should have enough ammo to outgun Bournemouth, making Over 3.00 at 2.11 and Total Goal 4-6 at 2.78 solid alternative bets, while Correct Score 3-1, the result of their most recent meeting in August, has a substantial offer of 9.75.

 

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