Liverpool won their first silverware in more than 18 months when they defeated Chelsea in a dramatic Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
Caoimhin Kelleher scored the 21st spot kick of an epic shoot-out before watching Chelsea counterpart Kepa Arrizabalaga balloon his effort over the bar as the Reds won 11-10 on penalties following a tense goalless draw.
The result means Jurgen Klopp’s side have completed the first leg of what they hope will be an unprecedented quadruple with major interest retained in the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.
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But there was plenty that went unnoticed or under the radar during the 120 minutes - and longer - at Wembley.
Salah tells Jorginho
The penalty shoot-out alone contained enough drama to surpass that of an average final.
And there were plenty of mind games being played as the scoreline kept rising and the tension increased.
Indeed, after Mohamed Salah scored Liverpool’s fifth, he had a brief message when passing Jorginho on the way back as the Chelsea midfielder prepared to keep his side in the match.
“Don’t jump!” was the message, referencing the Italian’s trademark move. It was ignored.
James and Lukaku silenced
There is always a propensity for players to look a bit silly in the fast-changing landscape of a penalty shoot-out.
And Chelsea duo Reece James and Romelu Lukaku both found that to their cost on Sunday.
When each held their nerve from 12 yards in front of the baying Liverpool supporters, they couldn’t resist raising their finger to their lips to signify the travelling Anfield army should remain silent.
Needless to say, come the final outcome, they weren’t.
Van Dijk destroys Kepa
Kepa Arrizabalaga has a rather terse relationship with the League Cup final, having refused to be substituted in the 2019 final and then unable to stop Chelsea falling to a penalty shoot-out defeat.
This time, though, the Spaniard couldn’t wait to get on as he was introduced purely for the spot-kick finale.
It didn’t quite go to plan, despite his best efforts to psyche out Virgil van Dijk by standing far to his right on the line and inviting the Liverpool man to fire into the wide open space.
Van Dijk instead hit into the top corner where Kepa was standing. The look the Dutchman than gave the Chelsea man said it all.
And about that ball…
To say Chelsea’s decision to bring on Kepa will be questioned is an understatement, not least given how well Eduoard Mendy had played in repelling Liverpool.
That was underlined when, having failed to save any of the 11 spot kicks he faced, the goalkeeper stepped up for his penalty and sent it into orbit.
A camera trained on Liverpool supporters in preparation for any celebrations inadvertently spotted the ball coming down to Earth towards the back of the lower tier of Wembley.
And later it emerged it was caught by one Reds fan who took it home as a souvenir from a memorable day.
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Milner has none of it
Tempers began to fray during the extra time period as both teams tired and the stakes were raised.
In one incident, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kai Havertz went head-to-head which prompted a right old rumpus near the touchline.
Harvey Elliott started to get involved before being physically dragged away by James Milner, who could see what may be coming from the youngster.
Instead, it was the experienced veteran - the on-field captain with Jordan Henderson having been substituted - who gave a variety of Chelsea players a piece of his mind. Now that’s a skipper.
CUP FINAL MAP: Show your support and tell us where you watched the win over Chelsea
Experience makes difference
Indeed, it wasn’t the only occasion at Wembley that Milner called upon his many years in the game.
During the short break before extra time, both the midfielder and Van Dijk were spotted giving a strong teamtalk to their fellow Liverpool team-mates.
And when the Reds raced to celebrate with Caoimhin Kelleher at the end of the penalty shoot-out, Milner instead opted for a satisfied thumbs up towards the bench before leisurely joining his colleagues.
To be fair, at 36 years of age, you have to pick your moments.
