Soccer-Liverpool through To League Cup Semis; Jesus Hat-trick Gives
Nunez and Elliott on target as Liverpool win 2-1
Jesus bags treble as Arsenal beat Palace 3-2
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Tonali ratings two times as Newcastle beat Brentford 3-1
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LONDON, Dec 18 (Reuters) -
Holders Liverpool scheduled their berth in the League Cup semi-finals with a 2-1 victory over Southampton at a wet and windy St Mary's Stadium on Wednesday, thanks to objectives from Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott.
Gabriel Jesus bagged a second-half hat-trick as Arsenal originated from behind to beat Crystal Palace 3-2, and Sandro Tonali scored two times to lead Newcastle to a 3-1 win over Brentford.
Nunez, who had actually been goaded by Saints fans earlier in the video game for a wild miss out on, got on the scoresheet in the 24th minute, pouncing after a mis-kick by centre back Jan Bednarek and a slip by keeper Alex McCarthy. Nunez put his finger to his lips in a gesture to the crowd after completing past McCarthy.
Elliott doubled the Reds' lead eight minutes later on when he released a low, hard shot from Cody Gakpo's pass. Cameron Archer pulled one back for the home side in the 59th minute with a curling shot from just inside the box.
"We came into this game understanding the scenarios that Southampton were going through and understood they were going to come out battling and we were ready for it," Elliott told Sky sports betting.
The video game was a tale of teams at opposite ends of the Premier League table, with Liverpool at the summit and Southampton-- who sacked supervisor Russell Martin following Sunday's 5-0 home loss to Tottenham Hotspur-- in last location with just one win.
"We need to safeguard the prize because the club won it last season, so we desire to compete in every league and this is among them, so we enjoy that we reached the semi-final," stated Reds manager Arne Slot, who saw the video game from journalism box while serving a touchline restriction.
Palace had Arsenal drawing in the 4th minute when Jean-Philippe Mateta pushed aside Gunners defender Jakub Kiwior to lock onto a long ball and side-foot home.
But Arsenal completely controlled the second half and Jesus equalised in the 54th minute when Martin Odegaard sent out a lovely through ball into package and the Brazilian broke the ball over Dean Henderson.
'SUCH QUALITY'
Jesus, who had scored just when this season before Wednesday, netted his second in the 73rd minute when Bukayo Saka slipped the ball through for him to hammer home. He finished his hat-trick eight minutes later when he ran onto a ball from Odegaard behind Palace's back line before shooting past Henderson.
"So happy for (Jesus). It's been an extended period for him without goals," Arsenal supervisor Mikel Arteta informed reporters. "To score the 3 types of goals and the lots of actions that he was involved in, it's a terrific thing for the group that we can count on a player with such quality."
Eddie Nketiah pulled one back for Palace late on when he leapt high to head home past David Raya.
At St James' Park, Tonali scored in the ninth minute when Nathan Collins' attempted clearance fell at his feet and he released a rocket from 20 lawns out-- his first objective given that his return in late-August from a 10-month restriction for breaching wagering guidelines.
Tonali volleyed home Anthony from near the charge area prior to the break for his second objective, and Newcastle tripled their lead when Bruno Guimaraes sent a pass across the goal for Fabian Schar to tap home in the 69th.
"It was great to see Sandro score the two that he did," Newcastle manager Eddie Howe informed the BBC. "Just an actually good feeling about the group at the minute. We are building in self-confidence all the time."
Yoane Wissa pulled one back for Brentford in injury time but the video game was well out of reach by then.
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The last semi-final place is up for grabs on Thursday when Tottenham Hotspur host Manchester United.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing Editing by Toby Davis)
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