Liverpool vs Tottenham: Carabao Cup Preview, Team News & Prediction (Sept 15, 2026)
Anfield hosts a rivalry that has rarely gone Tottenham’s way
Liverpool vs Tottenham: Carabao Cup Preview, Team News & Prediction (Sept 15, 2026).
Liverpool welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Anfield on Tuesday night for a Carabao Cup third-round tie between two sides still finding their footing this season. Neither club has European or league form to lean on heavily right now: Liverpool were held to a scoreless draw by bottom-of-the-table Fulham at the weekend, a result that came just days after beating Atlético Madrid in the Champions League. Andoni Iraola’s Tottenham arrive off the back of their own congested week, still chasing consistency early in the campaign.
This is the first cup meeting between the two since February 2025, when Liverpool won 4-0 at Anfield in the same competition en route to lifting the trophy that season. With no league table position to lean on this early, this preview leans on head-to-head history and recent form — and that history overwhelmingly favours the home side.
The sides have met 30 times across all competitions, with Liverpool winning 20 of those, Tottenham just 3, and 7 finishing level. Combined, the fixture has produced 104 goals — 70 for Liverpool, 34 for Tottenham — an average of 3.47 goals per meeting, a notably high-scoring rivalry by any measure.
Team news
Liverpool
- Joe Gomez — back in training, in contention
- Conor Bradley — out
- Giovanni Leoni — out
- Hugo Ekitike — out
Tottenham
- Sandro Tonali — fresh knock, ruled out
- Pedro Porro — still unavailable
- Destiny Udogie — available, in the squad
Last five meetings
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Mar 2026 | Premier League | Liverpool 1–1 Tottenham |
| 20 Dec 2025 | Premier League | Tottenham 1–2 Liverpool |
| 27 Apr 2025 | Premier League | Liverpool 5–1 Tottenham |
| 06 Feb 2025 | EFL Cup | Liverpool 4–0 Tottenham |
| 08 Jan 2025 | EFL Cup | Tottenham 1–0 Liverpool |
Both managers are likely to rotate with a busy fixture list ahead, but Liverpool’s recent dominance in this exact tie — including a 4-0 win the last time these two met in this competition — makes them the clear favourites at home. Tottenham’s threat on the counter keeps them capable of scoring, but containing Liverpool at Anfield across 90 minutes has proven difficult in almost every recent meeting.
