EFL 'under pressure' to investigate why Liverpool v Arsenal Carabao Cup semi-final was postponed

ByJames Walker-Roberts

Updated 10/01/2022 at 21:49 GMT

The first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Arsenal was postponed last week after Jurgen Klopp's side reported a “rapidly growing number” of Covid-19 cases to the EFL. However, it was later revealed by Klopp that all the cases were "false positives" apart from Trent Alexander-Arnold, raising questions among some clubs over the postponement.

The EFL is reportedly under pressure to investigate the circumstances around Liverpool’s postponed Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Arsenal.

The match was originally scheduled for January 6 but was postponed after Liverpool reported a “rapidly growing number” of Covid-19 cases to the EFL.

A statement from the EFL at the time said: “Having now fully reviewed the circumstances involved, the league has accepted Liverpool's request after determining, albeit reluctantly, that a postponement was the only option as the club looks to mitigate against the further risk of infection amongst its squad and staff alongside ensuring public health was protected by not travelling from Liverpool to London.”

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However, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said at the weekend that tests showed only Trent Alexander-Arnold actually had the virus.

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The Athletic report that the EFL has received complaints from some clubs over the decision to postpone the game.

Liverpool players apparently underwent at least two rounds of testing prior to the postponement, both of which highlighted a number of positive cases.

But a third round of tests indicated that the players in question were in fact negative.

Clubs want clarity over exactly when Liverpool found out this information and whether the game against Arsenal could have gone ahead.

There have been several postponements over the last month due to Covid-19 outbreaks but some clubs have also had requests rejected.

Trent Alexander-Arnold recently tested positive for Covid-19

Image credit: Getty Images

Speaking after Liverpool’s FA Cup victory over Shrewsbury Town on Sunday, Klopp, who also tested positive for Covid-19 earlier this year, said: “We had last week a proper outbreak and it showed up that we had a lot of false positives but the rules are like they are so all these players who are false positives couldn’t play.

“The only real positive came from Trent Alexander-Arnold and all the rest were false positives.”

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has questioned recent Premier League postponements, suggesting they have not all been due to Covid-19 issues.

"It was a clear message in the summer that we have to play when we have enough players. I cannot speak about the opposition's situation but the Premier League should know the details. The transparency is not there for us," said Hasenhuttl.

"I think it is relatively clear that not everybody is happy with this situation we have at the moment.

"We are still in the pandemic, but the pandemic isn't a decisive factor at the moment [in postponing games]. This situation of cancelling the games cannot last and go on like this."

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