EFL Confirms Liverpool vs. Aston Villa Carabao Cup Clash to Take Place Dec. 17

The Carabao Cup quarter-final match between Liverpool and Aston Villa will go ahead as planned on Tuesday, December 17, even though the Reds will participate in the FIFA Club World Cup concurrently.

The English Football League confirmed the date for the clash on Tuesday. According to their statement, Liverpool requested the date of December 17 and have committed to fielding a side that is "largely consistent" with the ones they have put out in the competition until this point.

Liverpool also released a statement:

"The club would like to take this opportunity to underline that while this is not an ideal scenario, it is an outcome which was arrived at with the best interests of the competition, our fellow clubs and ourselves as the sole motivating factor.

"We would like to thank the EFL for their efforts to accommodate us and we can confirm alternative dates were discussed, but ultimately none were considered suitable without compromising the scheduling of the competition itself or placing an undue strain on our playing staff."

The Reds are scheduled to play their first Club World Cup match in Doha just one day after the Carabao Cup tie. That means the team will be divided in half, with one squad traveling to Qatar and one making the trip to Birmingham.

Liverpool's Premier League match against West Ham United on December 21 has been postponed, as that is the day the Club World Cup final will be held. 

The Reds are expected to prioritise the Club World Cup, and GiveMeSport joked we could see a fair amount of academy players in the Carabao Cup:

Alternatively, manager Jurgen Klopp could opt to leave some of his top stars in England and use the Carabao Cup as the perfect excuse to rest his tired players. The festive period is one of the busiest on the English football calendar, and the Reds have fixtures scheduled on December 26, December 29 and January 2.

The UEFA Champions League winners are the European representatives at the Club World Cup and will go directly into the semi-finals. European teams have won the last six editions of the tournament.