Fulham are aiming to reach a first major domestic cup final since 1975; Liverpool need to avoid defeat to set up a Wembley final with Chelsea; watch Fulham vs Liverpool in the Carabao Cup live on Sky Sports Football and Main Event from 7pm on Wednesday night; kick-off 8pm
Wednesday 24 January 2024 18:23, UK
Marco Silva is looking to guide Fulham to the Carabao Cup final, but they must first overturn a 2-1 deficit against Liverpool at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night.
The Portuguese has revealed last season's embarrassing Carabao Cup exit to Crawley has spurred Fulham on to the semi-finals this year.
The Cottagers host Liverpool on Wednesday night trailing 2-1 on aggregate as they aim to reach a first major domestic cup final since 1975.
Silva's side led at Anfield in the first leg before conceding twice in three minutes to find themselves as the underdogs to reach Wembley.
This season's cup journey is a far cry from their 2-0 loss to Crawley in the second round last August, where Silva made 10 changes from their previous Premier League game.
"My ambition is to always play cup competitions and go further," Silva said on the eve of the tie.
"Last season we were promoted and we played in the quarter-final of the FA Cup and our aim was always to go further - of course it's important to recognise that the Premier League was the main thing.
"But at the same time, when we played the other competitions we were trying to be strong enough - the first game in the Carabao was really poor last season.
"It was a good moment to speak with the players about what I demand from them and what we demand from any competitions that you play in the future."
Silva has taken charge of 229 games in England across spells at Hull, Watford, Everton and Fulham.
The 46-year-old also reached the Greek Cup final with Olympiakos in 2016, having won the Taca de Portugal with Sporting the season before.
But he admits the visit of Liverpool and the potential for a first game as a manager at Wembley means this is one of the biggest nights of his managerial career in England.
"It is one of them, yes," he replied. "I did play a [League Cup] semi-final with Hull City as well against Manchester United but, if you ask me right now, I would prefer to have another more important one in one month's time or two months' time."
As for Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp's side are likely to be without Mohamed Salah until the middle of next month whatever the outcome of his rehabilitation, although there is more positive news on the club's long list of absentees.
Left-back Andy Robertson, who has been sidelined with a dislocated shoulder since October, is in the squad as Liverpool look to book their place at Wembley.
Not ready for this game, but probably for the weekend, are Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dominik Szoboszlai, with Kostas Tsimikas another two weeks away from recovering fully from a broken collarbone.
But it is Robertson's long-awaited return which will be a big boost.
"Robbo is now 13 weeks after surgery and he got clearance to train fully with the team, can make contact as the bone has healed and that's really cool," said assistant manager Pep Lijnders.
"I just met him in the canteen and he said, 'Pep, I've brought my tracksuit with me today'. He only trained once, but he is pushing himself into the squad.
"Medical team say it's a coaching decision - so he's in."
Liverpool just need to avoid defeat at Craven Cottage to book a return to Wembley two years after they won a domestic cup double.
"Playing finals is the most important thing for a team to develop. Playing in a semi-final in January is great and being able to reach Wembley is unbelievable," said Ljnders.
"All these things have an impact on development."
Salah has the most goal involvements. Virgil van Dijk is back to his imperious best. Alisson is again in contention for the golden glove and Alexander-Arnold is excelling in his hybrid role.
But perhaps the most impressive performances for Liverpool this season have come from their manager, Jurgen Klopp...
Do not forget that you can watch Fulham vs Liverpool in the Carabao Cup live on Sky Sports Football and Main Event from 7pm on Wednesday night, with kick-off at 8pm, while you can also follow the game via our minute-by-minute match blog on both the Sky Sports app and website, with in-game clips and goals as they go in from Craven Cottage.
