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Not for the first time in the EFL Cup and probably not for the last time, Caoimhin Kelleher was Liverpool’s saviour from the spot as a youthful Reds side edged past League One’s Derby on penalties after a 0-0 draw in Wednesday’s third-round battle.

Jurgen Klopp‘s side may have missed twice from 12 yards themselves, but Kelleher kept out three spot kicks before Harvey Elliott scored the decisive penalty to keep Liverpool’s dreams of back-to-back EFL Cup crowns alive.

Liverpool are seemingly set to enter the World Cup break on a high note, having also put Napoli and Tottenham Hotspur to the sword since the start of November – with Mohamed Salah netting a brace versus the North London club last weekend before Harry Kane‘s consolation.

Despite ending their two-game losing run in the top flight at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Liverpool remain outsiders when it comes to the fight for a European place – currently lying in eighth in the table and seven points adrift of the Champions League places, albeit with a game in hand on some of the teams above them.

Liverpool now have the chance to win four successive matches for the first time all season, and keeping Derby at bay made it five clean sheets from their last six games at Anfield in all competitions – the exception being that 2-1 loss to Leeds United.

Of course, once Liverpool lost one Premier League game at Anfield in the 2020-21 season, they went on to suffer a whopping six defeats on the bounce at home, and the new manager bounce cannot come quickly enough for Southampton here.

Liverpool’s medical room is still occupied by the trio of Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Arthur and Naby Keita, but Joel Matip is back in training and has a slim chance of being involved.

On a brighter note, James Milner is expected to return from concussion protocol to boost Klopp’s options in the engine room, and the Reds boss was not averse to handing starts to the likes of Stefan Bajcetic, Calvin Ramsay, Melkamu Frauendorf and Layton Stewart in the EFL Cup.

Jones’s appointment was confirmed on Thursday morning, as the 49-year-old penned a deal at St Mary’s until 2026 after the South Coast side edged past Sheffield Wednesday on penalties in the EFL Cup, having played out a 1-1 draw with Darren Moore‘s side in normal time.

Prior to his departure, Hasenhuttl’s final Premier League game in charge of Southampton ended in a 4-1 drubbing at the hands of high-flying Newcastle United, and the visitors to Anfield occupy a spot in the relegation zone as a result – just one point behind Bournemouth in 17th.

While Liverpool have performed relatively well on the defensive front at home recently, Southampton have only scored one goal in their last five Premier League away games, and defeat would consign the Saints to a place in the relegation zone at Christmas for the first time since 2004-05, when they were eventually demoted.

Liverpool did the double over Southampton by an aggregate scoreline of 6-1 last season and have won each of their last five at Anfield against the Saints without conceding, so any hopes of a fast start for Jones’s time in charge of the visitors are wafer-thin indeed.

Having given the youngsters a run-out in midweek, Klopp should revert to the same XI that got the job done against Tottenham last weekend, as Salah aims to make it 100 goal contributions in 100 Premier League games at Anfield. The Egyptian sits on 70 strikes and 29 assists from 99 top-flight home games for Liverpool, and only Thierry Henry has at least 100 contributions in 100 such matches in Premier League history.

Meanwhile, Jones favoured a three-man backline during the latter stages of his time in charge of Luton Town, and he may stick with such a formula here given Valentino Livramento and Kyle Walker-Peters‘s injuries.

Eighteen-year-old Juan Larios started at right-back against Newcastle before coming off in the first half with an adductor injury, but no fresh concerns have arisen following Wednesday’s EFL Cup win.

Stand-in manager Ruben Selles handed Sekou Mara and Sam Edozie opportunities to impress from the first whistle in midweek, but Jones should place his faith in Che Adams and Mohamed Elyounoussi at Anfield.

Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Salah, Fabinho, Thiago, Elliott; Nunez, Firmino

Southampton possible starting lineup:
Bazunu; Lyanco, Bella-Kotchap, Salisu; Elyounoussi, Ward-Prowse, Lavia, S. Armstrong, Perraud; Aribo, Adams

James Milner has been cleared to play for Liverpool after concussion and could make his 600th Premier League appearance.

Juan Larios will be assessed ahead of Southampton manager Nathan Jones’ first game in charge of the club.

Fellow defenders Kyle Walker-Peters and Tino Livramento are long-term absentees

Nathan Jones takes charge of Southampton for the first time here but how much difference can he make in a couple of days? Saints just don’t score enough goals but Anfield is not exactly the ideal place to go for a club to get a managerial bounce.

Admittedly my record of predicting Liverpool’s results this season has been a bit hit and miss, but I didn’t just call their win at Tottenham last week, I nailed the exact result.

I’m still not absolutely sure the Reds will win this one, just because of their inconsistency, but given their season so far, I think Jurgen Klopp will be absolutely desperate to go into this winter break on a high.

Head-to-head

• Liverpool have earned five straight league wins against Southampton at Anfield, scoring a combined 16 goals without reply. It’s Saints’ longest run of top-flight away games without scoring against a particular team.
• Southampton have lost nine of the past 10 league meetings, with the exception being a 1-0 home victory in January last year.

Liverpool

• The Reds will be outside the top four on Christmas Day for the first time since 2015, when Jurgen Klopp had been manager for only two months.
• They have already dropped 20 points this season, only two fewer than in the whole of 2021-22.
• Liverpool’s 29-match unbeaten home league run was ended by Leeds in their most recent outing at Anfield.
• They could lose four consecutive Premier League games against sides in the relegation zone for the first time, having already been beaten by Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and Leeds this season.

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• Mohamed Salah has been directly involved in 19 goals in 20 appearances for Liverpool this season, scoring 14 and providing five assists.

Southampton

• If Southampton lose, it will be the first time they have been in the bottom three at Christmas since 2004-05, which ended with their only relegation from the Premier League.
• Saints suffered 68 defeats and conceded 255 goals – both league highs – during Ralph Hasenhuttl’s 151 league games in charge.
• They have only won four of their past 26 league matches, conceding 54 goals.
• The most recent Southampton manager to win his first Premier League fixture in charge was Paul Sturrock at home to Liverpool in March 2004.