Darwin Núñez propelled Liverpool to victory over Southampton as Arne Slot’s side secured a spot in the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Núñez ended a six-game goal drought, opening the scoring alongside Harvey Elliott, who added another to give Liverpool a commanding first-half lead. Cameron Archer later pulled one back for Southampton, providing the hosts with a glimmer of hope.
Southampton, under interim manager Simon Rusk following Russell Martin’s dismissal after a 5-0 defeat to Tottenham, began the match with energy but conceded after 24 minutes.
Trent Alexander-Arnold showcased his skill, evading two Southampton attackers and delivering a deflected pass off Jan Bednarek to find Núñez. The Uruguayan capitalized on Alex McCarthy’s slip, calmly finishing past the goalkeeper.
Eight minutes later, Elliott extended Liverpool’s lead with a deflected shot into the bottom corner, set up by Cody Gakpo. It was Elliott’s first start of the season and a memorable one.
Slot, serving a one-game touchline ban and watching from the stands, may have seen the match slipping away as Liverpool substituted Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez at halftime for Konstantinos Tsimikas and Federico Chiesa.
However, Liverpool’s reduced intensity gave Southampton an opening. Archer seized the moment just before the hour mark, running nearly the length of the pitch and curling a superb strike into the far corner of Caoimhin Kelleher’s net.
Southampton gained momentum and nearly equalized when Taylor Harwood-Bellis cleared Chiesa’s goal-bound shot. Despite several promising attacks, they failed to find an equalizer.
In injury time, Southampton appealed for a free-kick near the box, claiming Jarell Quansah had pulled down Mateus Fernandes, but referee Simon Hooper waved play on.
Liverpool now join Arsenal and Newcastle in the semi-finals, with the final slot to be decided in Thursday’s clash between Tottenham and Manchester United (20:00 GMT).
Liverpool youngsters get job done
Liverpool may have drawn their last two Premier League matches, but they remain at the top of the table and continue to dominate in the Champions League. A strong defence of their Carabao Cup title also remains a key objective.
Despite not being at their best at St. Mary’s, the Reds managed a win with a rotated squad, resting key players like Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and Dominik Szoboszlai.
Arne Slot fielded a youthful side, including a first senior start for 17-year-old Trey Nyoni and a substitute appearance for 20-year-old James McConnell. The young lineup took control early and endured Southampton’s spirited second-half surge.
Liverpool had struggled to defeat the Saints in the league last month, requiring two Salah goals to overturn a deficit. This time, however, they secured a more comfortable victory without relying on their star players—highlighting the depth of talent within the squad.
It was also a confidence-boosting night for Darwin Núñez. Scoring for only the fourth time in 21 appearances this season, the striker celebrated by silencing the home crowd who had taunted him earlier.
Slot will hope Núñez can build on this performance and find consistent form heading into a busy festive schedule.
Encouraging signs for Saints
Whoever succeeds Martin on a permanent basis faces a mammoth task to save Southampton from relegation. The Saints are rock-bottom of the Premier League, nine points from safety after one win from 16 games.
That said, during the second half on Wednesday the home side showed signs of being a team that could launch an improbable fightback.
Rusk’s players created several decent opportunities after half-time, taking three shots on target compared to Liverpool’s one. If the video assistant referee (VAR) was in operation, they might have been awarded a last-gasp penalty to send the tie to a shootout.
Harwood-Bellis also produced two heroic clearances to deny Chiesa, the kind of defending that will serve his side well in a relegation scrap.