Iraola glad to build positive Anfield energy as Liverpool overcome Chelsea

Andoni Iraola acknowledged the importance of Liverpool correcting their poor home form early on in his reign, after his side eliminated Chelsea from the EFL Cup at Anfield.

Wesley Fofana missed the decisive penalty as Liverpool won 6-5 in a dramatic shoot-out to book their spot in the quarter-finals, where Iraola's former club Bournemouth await them.

Morgan Rogers and Cody Gakpo had both found the target from 12 yards during a 1-1 draw in regulation time, while Kostas Tsimikas and Emmanuel Emegha missed opportunities to win the shoot-out for their respective teams before Fofana blazed wildly into the Kop.

Wednesday's game was Liverpool's third in eight days at home, following victories over Villarreal (4-3) in the Champions League and Brighton (2-0) in the Premier League.

And, after the Reds only won two of their first five home games under him in all competitions (D2 L1), Iraola felt it was important to build a winning feeling on their own turf, particularly with Premier League champions Arsenal visiting on Sunday.

"It's three in a row at home, which is very important. We were struggling a little bit at home," Iraola told Sky Sports. 

"Now, we have the confidence of winning three in a row and we have the biggest one against Arsenal on Sunday.

"We don't have a lot of time. Some of the players who played most of the minutes will need a very good rest. Then, we'll see who is available on Sunday."

Iraola went with a relatively strong starting lineup, though he did hand starts to four youngsters in Trey Nyoni, Rio Ngumoha, James McConnell and Lewis Koumas.

And the Spaniard was impressed with the level they showed. Nyoni's performance was particularly eye-catching, as he tallied the most touches (86) and completed the most passes (65/76) of any player on the pitch.

Ngumoha, meanwhile, completed a game-high four dribbles (from four attempted) and won eight of the 11 duels he contested – the most of any Liverpool player.

"I think they did a good job. I think they deserved the right to play because they were also very good against Spurs in the last round," Iraola said of Liverpool's youngsters. 

"We told them that they are first-team players and we are confident if they have to play. They showed us they have a very good level and they helped us a lot.

"I think it was quite a level game. It was very competitive, not a lot of chances for both teams. There were moments for us, moments for them. 

"We are really happy with the performances of a lot of the players and obviously happy to finish on the right end of the penalty shoot-out because it gave us the chance to be in the draw."