Dominik Szoboszlai is hoping to make up for lost time when Liverpool take on Newcastle United in the League Cup final on Sunday
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Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai
Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai(Image: Richard Martin-Roberts - CameraSport/CameraSport via Getty Images)
Dominik Szoboszlai believes Liverpool's "special" squad could make the difference as he prepares to make up for lost time in the League Cup final at Wembley. Szoboszlai is pressing hard for a start as the Reds aim to retain the trophy against Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon.
The midfielder has been a regular since arriving from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2023 but was absent from last season's League Cup final when an injury-hit Reds secured a remarkable victory over Chelsea.
Szoboszlai is one of 27 players used by Arne Slot in the competition this campaign and scored in the 4-0 semi-final second leg win over Tottenham Hotspur last month that booked Liverpool's Wembley return.
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And the Hungary international reckons the whole squad must be prepared to play a part as they aim to win the first silverware of Slot's tenure.
“We are ready to fight,” said Szoboszlai “You never know who is going to play, but it doesn’t matter on our side who is playing in midfield – everybody is ready to fight and everybody is ready to give everything for the team.
“It’s a final, so you go in a different way into the game. But as I said, it doesn’t matter who is playing. The most important is that everybody’s goal is the same. I know it’s always easy to say if you’re playing to the guys who are not playing so much ‘yeah, just focus on the team because the team is the most important’, that’s true.
“But I have been in the situation also and it’s not the easiest way, but you have to keep going, you have to handle it, your time will come. Things change really quickly. Unlucky if somebody gets injured, then you have to step in and then you have to be ready and you have to show yourself. That’s the most important (thing).
“Hopefully that can make us special, that we have the whole squad."
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A hamstring injury suffered against Newcastle in the Premier League which was later aggravated on his return to action ruled Szoboszlai out of last season's League Cup final.
And the 24-year-old has detailed how close he came to featuring at Wembley. Speaking to liverpoolfc.com, Szoboszlai said: "I had the opportunity to play but I couldn’t because of my injury. Hopefully now I have the chance to play. That’s the decision of the coach but I’m ready to play.
“I wanted to (play last year). Also I had a little pain still but I wanted to play. But then we were thinking long term. So, it’s better not to risk it for one game and be out for even longer, so that’s why we decided not to play. But they did very well and hopefully this year as well.”