Jurgen Klopp has guaranteed that Liverpool will win the Capital One Cup after last night’s dramatic penalty shootout victory over Stoke City in the semi-final.
The Reds triumphed 6-5 on spot kicks after Stoke had won 1-0 at Anfield to cancel out their single-goal deficit from the first leg and force the tie into extra time.
And now Klopp, who took over at Liverpool in October, has promised to lead the club to a “deserved” first trophy in four years regardless of who they face at Wembley.
Although he did admit that a final against Everton, who currently lead Manchester City 2-1 after a home first leg, would give the occasion an extra sense of romance.
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“Manchester City or Everton, I don’t care, we will win the cup,” Klopp is quoted as saying by Sky Sports. “[Liverpool] is a wonderful city and they deserve it.
“We have been here for four months now and I can only say the best about Liverpool. It’s great to live here and live in the surroundings to meet people – even when you meet Everton fans!
“Maybe I shouldn’t say this, but everyone up until now has been very friendly – they like that I’m here as we don’t have much success.
“If we meet each other then for Liverpool it is a great final and for LFC very important.”
Liverpool’s most recent piece of silverware was this competition in the 2011-12 season. The last time that they faced their Merseyside rivals in a final was the 1989 FA Cup.
Joe Allen netted the winning penalty for the Reds on Tuesday after Simon Mignolet had saved spot kicks from Stoke’s Marc Muniesa and former Liverpool striker Peter Crouch.
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