League One Derby County held Carabao Cup holders Liverpool to a goalless draw in their third round contest, before the Reds emerged victorious in a penalty shootout. 

Caoimhin Kelleher saved three penalties, including the Rams fifth penalty from Everton loanee Lewis Dobbin. 

Harvey Elliott then stepped-up and smashed his penalty home to secure progression to the next round for Jurgen Klopp's side.

Here are the main takeaways from Wednesday evening's clash. 

  • Cup-king Kelleher

The hero as the Reds lifted the trophy in February, Jurgen Klopp stuck with Kelleher for the first match in the defence of his team's title.

The Irishman's incredible performance in the shootout set a remarkable record.

In only 18 appearances for the club, Kelleher has won four penalty shootouts, the most for a goalkeeper in Liverpool history. 

All of the wins have came in the Carabao Cup. The first was a fourth-round win against Arsenal in 2019, before last season's heroics against Leicester in the fifth-round and Chelsea in the final.

It was a timely reminder of the quality of the 23-year-old after his struggles with injury so far this season. 

  • Scottish sensations

Ben Doak and Calvin Ramsay had the Anfield faithful salivating with their performances.

19-year-old Ramsay had the most touches of any Reds player (131) and the highest pass success (95%). 

He was certainly not afraid to get forward, almost reminiscent of his right-back counterpart Trent Alexander-Arnold.

He seems just as confident going back towards his own goal, with the pace, tenacity and intelligence to potentially challenge the 24-year-old for a spot in the starting XI. 

Meanwhile, Doak, who replaced Fabio Carvalho with 16 minutes remaining, showed fans why he is rated so highly amongst academy staff. 

In that short cameo, the 16-year-old completed three of the four dribbles that he attempted and won four out of six ground duels. 

Jurgen Klopp was full of praise for his display after the contest.

"He’s really a lively boy, a smart player, good dribbler, fast, can use both legs," he said. 

"It was really nice to watch, him coming in and immediately a lot of things are obviously natural to him, which is really helpful," he added.

  • Klopp's faith in youth nearly backfires

Klopp is known for turning to youth in the earlier stages of this competition, and it was no different against Derby. 

He handed a first-team debut to Layton Stewart; whilst also starting youngsters Stefan Bajcetic, Bobby Clark and Melkamu Frauendorf. From the bench, Doak also made his debut for the senior side.  

There was a blend of youth and experience in the starting XI as Kelleher, Ramsay, Nat Phillips, Joe Gomez, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabio Carvalho were included. 

Roberto Firmino, Darwin Nunez and Elliott were brought on, in an attempt to avoid a penalty shootout however the home team could not breach the opposition defence.

  • Derby roll back the years

On their first trip to Anfield in 15 years, the Rams brought 5,600 fans. 

Those supporters can hold their heads up, proud of their team after a battling performance. 

 

Goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith frustrated the hosts with a number of superb saves, and Eiran Cashin was a rock at the back.

Max Bird and David McGoldrick even had chances to win it for the third-tier outfit. 

Alas, it was not to be and the holders go on to the next round to defend their title.