Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's EFL Cup third round clash between Leicester City and Liverpool at the King Power Stadium!

Neither of these two sides come into this match in particularly good form having each gone three games without a win, but both are expected to field vastly different XIs to their most recent Premier League outing and tonight will be a chance for some of the fringe players to shine.

On that note, let's take a look at the team news for tonight's game...

LEICESTER STARTING XI: Hamer; Amartey, Dragović, Morgan, Chilwell; Albrighton, Iborra, Ndidi, Gray; Slimani, Ulloa

LEICESTER SUBS: Jakupovic, Benalouane, Choudhury, Mahrez, Musa, Okazaki, Iheanacho

LIVERPOOL STARTING XI: Ward; Flanagan, Gomez, Klavan, Robertson; Henderson, Grujic, Wijnaldum; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Coutinho, Solanke

LIVERPOOL SUBS: Karius, Milner, Moreno, Ings, Markovic, Woodburn, Alexander-Arnold

Changes galore as expected, then, but what can we make of those two sides?

Well, the headline news as far as the hosts are concerned is that Jamie Vardy misses out having picked up a groin injury during Saturday's 1-1 draw with Huddersfield. Vardy - who has scored five of the six goals Leicester have ever scored against Liverpool in the Premier League - was always a major doubt for this match after sustaining that problem, and as expected Craig Shakespeare has opted against risking his main striker this evening.

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The hosts are also without the injured trio of Matty James, Robert Huth and Christian Fuchs, which does limit Shakespeare's options somewhat, but the Leicester boss has still made seven changes to his starting XI from that draw with Huddersfield at the weekend.

Those changes start in goal, but there is no debut for summer signing Eldin Jakupovic as Ben Hamer gets the nod in between the sticks. Schmeichel is given the night off entirely, while in the back four captain Wes Morgan and Ben Chilwell are the only ones to keep their places.

Danny Simpson and Harry Maguire both drop out of the matchday squad to make room for Amartey and Dragovic at the back, the latter of whom makes his debut for the Foxes this evening.

Further forward there is another debut too as Vicente Iborra makes his first Leicester appearance in a competitive game since his summer move from Sevilla, and a decent performance for him tonight could be enough to fastrack himself into the Premier League side - where he is expected to end up anyway.

Another notable inclusion for the home side is Demarai Gray, who is expected to sign a new deal with the club in the coming days. The highly-rated youngster has featured in all five of his side's Premier League games this season without starting any of them, and is known to want more regular first-team football.

Tonight is a real chance to show what he can do alongside the likes of Slimani and Ulloa, who lead the line.

Liverpool's changes are even more wholesale than Leicester, with Jurgen Klopp bringing in no fewer than eight new players into the starting lineup from the weekend draw with Burnley.

Of those, the headline is another start for Philippe Coutinho, who failed to make the difference on Saturday in what was his first club start of the season. The Brazilian was, of course, embroiled in a long-running transfer saga during the summer and has since admitted that he wanted to leave Liverpool, but he has also said that he is fully committed to the Reds having been made to stay against his own will.

With plenty of young and unfamiliar players around him, Coutinho could be the key to making something happen for Liverpool tonight.

Another notable inclusion from Klopp is Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who makes his first Liverpool start following his £35m deadline-day switch from Arsenal. The Ox has come off the bench a few times since his arrival at Anfield, but tonight is the first time that he will have the chance to show what he can do from the start.

The lineup suggests that he will be playing as part of the front three - and so not in the central midfield three which is understood to be his favoured position - but wherever he is playing, this is his first real shot and crowbarring his way into the starting XI on a regular basis.

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Dominic Solanke makes up that front three, and while he has less chance of becoming a regular in the Premier League side this season, he will still be looking to prove a point tonight following a good pre-season campaign.

It is all change in midfield for the Reds as captain Jordan Henderson returns alongside Georginio Wijnaldum after both sat out the draw with Burnley in midweek. Marko Grujic joins them in the three-man midfield, with Milner, Can and Salah all dropping out.

As promised, Klopp also hands a start to third-choice goalkeeper Danny Ward, which is likely to be the case for as long as this EFL Cup run continues. Ward was instrumental in helping Huddersfield into the Premier League last season, but he finds himself below Mignolet and Karius in the pecking order at Anfield and so nights like this are crucial for him to show what he can do in a game scenario.

In front of him will be the unfamiliar quartet of Robertson, Klavan, Gomez and Flanagan, the latter of whom is making his first Liverpool appearance since May 2016.

It is hard what to know what to expect when there are such sweeping changes to both lineups, particularly with these two teams, who can be inconsistent at the best of times.

Leicester have spent plenty of money since their incredible title success a couple of seasons ago, but that has failed to help them stay amongst the top half in the Premier League so far and Craig Shakespeare's side have made another slow start to the current campaign with only four points from their opening five games.

The Foxes sit 15th in the Premier League as a result of that total, with their sole victory this season coming at home to newly-promoted Brighton on the second weekend of the season.

Only goal difference is keeping Leicester out of the relegation zone as things stand, thanks largely to a three-match winless streak since beating Sheffield United in the last round of this competition. Leicester have picked up just one point from the nine available to them in that time, with that point coming in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Huddersfield.

Leicester could well have won that match had Vardy not spurned a glorious chance, although the England international was on the scoresheet anyway to earn a point for his side.

Indeed, of the teams outside the current top three in the table only Liverpool have scored more goals than Leicester this season, but it is at the other end of the table where their problems have come, conceding nine times in their five outings so far - only West Ham and Everton have a worse record.

This is the first of two matches between these two sides here in the space of four days, with Leicester also hosting Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday.

Defeat in this evening's game would condemn Leicester to consecutive losses in front of their own fans for the first time under Shakespeare and the first time as a club since February, when they were beaten here by Chelsea and Manchester United.

Chelsea were the last team to beat them here too, running out 2-1 winners 10 days ago, so that may not be a good omen for the Foxes tonight.

Speaking of Chelsea, the Blues knocked Leicester out of the EFL Cup at this stage last season, although they needed extra time before running out 4-2 winners. In fact, Leicester have not lost an EFL Cup game inside 90 minutes since August 2014, when they were beaten at home to Shrewsbury Town in the second round.

Leicester have lost three of their last four home outings in this competition, though, and are without a home EFL Cup win inside 90 minutes since a thrilling 4-3 victory over Fulham in the last 16 in 2013. Leicester have won a tie via extra time in that period, but it is now almost four years since they got the job done at the King Power without the need for additional time.

The stats suggest that, at the very least, we should be in for goals tonight. Leicester have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 12 EFL Cup games - a run which stretches back to a 4-0 triumph over Torquay in August 2012, while their last seven EFL Cup meetings against Premier League opposition have seen no fewer than 37 goals.

That is an average of 5.3 goals per game against top-flight sides in this competition, with Leicester scoring 15 and conceding 22 of those.

Adding Liverpool to the equation will do nothing to lessen the odds of this one turning into a high-scoring affair, with the Reds boasting a deadly attack but enduring an error-filled period at the back.

Of course, neither the attack nor the defence is at full strength for the visitors tonight, but Klopp's style is still likely to see chances created at both ends and, considering no team has seen more goals in their Premier League games than Liverpool this season, the changes may not limit the goalscoring in this one.

The problem for Liverpool is that their 18 Premier League goals this season have been made up of nine for and nine against. Only the top two in the league - both Manchester clubs, in other words - have scored more, but Liverpool's defensive record is as poor as Leicester's with only West Ham and Everton conceding more.

Manchester United and Manchester City have both seen 18 goals go in in their opening five league games too, but the difference is that they have both scored 16 and conceded two - a long way from Liverpool's evenly-shared goal difference.

It is still far too early to be looking at the Premier League table and drawing any conclusions, but Liverpool are already five points behind those top two and they cannot afford to let that gap grow much bigger if they are to challenge from the title further down the line.

This past week has been particularly damaging for Liverpool's ambitions, with their 5-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City being following up by home draws against Sevilla and Burnley. The loss to City is one Liverpool had to take on the chin following Mane's controversial red card, but the two draws since have been entirely avoidable.

Defensive errors have undermined the performance on both occasions, and Klopp does not seem to have fixed the major problem from last season - which just so happens to be one which would make any title challenge hugely difficult.

On the bright side, though, Liverpool did still manage to pick up points in those past two games, and including the end of last term they have now lost just one of their last 12 outings across all competitions.

Liverpool are tonight looking to avoid going four games without a win for the first time since February, which was also the last time they lost back-to-back away matches. The 5-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City was Liverpool's most recent away outing, but also their only defeat in their last eight matches on the road and they have not failed to score in back-to-back away games since December 2015.

Tonight's match is the start of four away games in a row for Liverpool, the first two of which come here at the King Power in a four-day spell.

After the double-header against the Foxes, Liverpool then face a difficult trip to Russia to face Spartak Moscow in the Champions League before returning home and taking on Newcastle United in the Premier League. Then, finally, they will be back at Anfield for the October 14 showdown against arch rivals Manchester United.

Manchester United, incidentally, were the last side to prevent Liverpool from getting past the third round in this competition, doing so in September 2013 with a 1-0 win. Since that defeat Liverpool have reached at least the semi-finals each season, being knocked out in the last four twice and losing to Manchester City in the 2016 final.

However, Liverpool have only managed to win one of their last five EFL Cup games against Premier League opposition, including losing both legs of their semi-final against Southampton last season.

PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at the King Power Stadium, which means that it is time for a prediction!

These matches are always difficult to call when a lot of the fringe players are on show, but Klopp's rotation at the weekend too means that they are still able to call upon the likes of Coutinho, Henderson and Wijnaldum. That added quality in midfield could make the difference tonight, and we're going for a narrow away victory as a result.

Sports Mole says: Leicester 1-2 Liverpool

For a long time this fixture was dominated by Liverpool, but things have begun to swing in Leicester favour more recently. The Foxes have only won two of their last 10 competitive meetings with Liverpool, but those have come in the space of the last three editions of his fixture.

The most recent of those came in February when Vardy scored either side of a Drinkwater strike to help Leicester to a 3-1 victory, with Liverpool only managing a Coutinho goal in reply.

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Liverpool did beat Leicester in pre-season, though, running out 2-1 winners in their Premier League Asia Trophy meeting in Hong Kong as goals from Salah and Coutinho cancelled out Slimani's opener.

These two sides have only ever met once in this competition, with Liverpool coming out on top en route to the final in 1987 courtesy of a 4-1 victory in the third round.

Leicester have won their last two home games against Liverpool having failed to beat them in front of their own fans since 2001 before that, so they are on good form against the Reds on their own patch.

Right, the players are on their way out onto the field and we're just about ready to go here. A reminder of the team news before we get started...

LEICESTER STARTING XI: Hamer; Amartey, Dragović, Morgan, Chilwell; Albrighton, Iborra, Ndidi, Gray; Slimani, Ulloa

LIVERPOOL STARTING XI: Ward; Flanagan, Gomez, Klavan, Robertson; Henderson, Grujic, Wijnaldum; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Coutinho, Solanke

KICKOFF: Here we go, then! Liverpool get us underway at the King Power Stadium!

Positive start to the match from Leicester, who are on the front foot early and earn themselves a corner after just three minutes.

Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet is watching this one at home having been given the night off...

Not used watching from home. Behind the telly tonight, always behind the team! 👏🏻🔴 #LFC #YoullNeverWatchAlone pic.twitter.com/eEzs3ZE4Bu — Simon Mignolet (@SMignolet) September 19, 2017

CHANCE! The first big chance of the evening falls the way of Liverpool, and it takes a fine block from Chilwell to deny them. It is a really good move from the visitors which eventually releases Robertson down the left side of the box. His low pass finds Oxlade-Chamberlain, who really should score, but his shot is blocked by Chilwell and Leicester escape with just a corner against them.

CHANCE! Leicester fail to deal with the resulting delivery and it eventually falls to Solanke, but he flashes his shot right across the face of goal on the turn.

Robertson has already been afforded a lot of space down that left flank. He swings an enticing cross into the box again here, but it is just too far in front of Solanke.

Good work from Danny Ward as he comes flying out of his area to sweep up a ball over the top. It looked for a moment as though Slimani might get there first, but Ward was alert.

Liverpool come forward at the other end and again the final delivery comes from the left, but this time Morgan gets a good challenge in on Solanke to prevent him from getting on the end of Robertson's cross.

SAVE! Coutinho shows off his dancing feet to jink his way into the Leicester box, and as soon as he gets in the area the defenders daren't touch him. Coutinho is afforded the space to shoot as a result, but Hamer makes the save.

UPDATE: Stop the press! Crystal Palace have scored a goal! The Eagles open their account under Roy Hodgson as Bakary Sako gives them the lead against Huddersfield, while elsewhere West Ham and Norwich have taken early leads against Bolton and Brentford respectively.

Gomez does well to win the visitors a corner, and Grujic manages to get his head to the resulting delivery despite Coutinho's cross being slightly overhit. Grujic's header is never threatening the goal, though.

SAVE! Coutinho is being given too much room to pull the strings at the moment. The Brazilian comes forward again here, playing a one-two with Solanke before drilling a low strike straight at Hamer from 25 yards.

Liverpool come forward again, this time down the right channel, but the attack breaks down when Oxlade-Chamberlain blasts what is neither a shot nor a cross over the bar. Poor from the new Liverpool man.

SAVE! We haven't seen much of Gray so far, but he bursts into life here as Leicester hit Liverpool on the counter. The youngster brings the ball forward and gets the King Power on their feet, but his eventual shot is tame and easy for Ward to gather.

CHANCE! Robertson has looked so dangerous with those crosses from the left so far tonight. He bends another peach of a delivery in and this time Solanke is able to get on the end of it, but only on the stretch and he can't divert it on target. Only a half-chance really, but if a goal is coming then it looks most likely to come via that Liverpool left.

Clever play from Oxlade-Chamberlain as he beats one man and then slides a smart pass through for Coutinho, who catches it on the byline and hammers a cross in front of goal which no red shirts can get on the end of.

We're more than a quarter of the way through this match and Liverpool have been comfortably the better team so far. The Reds have seen the lion's share of possession and looked a lot more likely to get the opening goal here, with Coutinho and Robertson looking particularly dangerous.

CLOSE! Speaking of Coutinho and Robertson - the duo combine to come close again! Coutinho is the catalyst once again as he drives forward before giving the ball to Solanke, who in turn shifts it on to Robertson. The full-back hammers the ball across goal and Coutinho would be left with a simple tap-in from close range but for a crucial touch from Morgan.

This has been a really disappointing performance from Leicester so far. They are struggling to keep hold of the ball and it is not sticking up front with either Ulloa or Slimani at the moment. Liverpool are in control, but they need to make the scoreboard represent that.

SAVE! Another shot from Liverpool, but another routine save for Hamer. Oxlade-Chamberlain cuts inside from the right and lets fly with his weaker left foot, but his low strike is straight at the Leicester keeper.

Coutinho is still the man making Liverpool tick at the moment. Leicester just cannot pick him up and the pressure from the visitors is relentless. The only thing missing for Liverpool so far is a goal.

Solanke and Chilwell both need a bit of treatment following a collision in the box, but the main Liverpool concern will be over Oxlade-Chamberlain at the time. He has gone over to the touchline on a couple of occasions now and seems to be struggling with a calf or ankle problem.

Less than 10 minutes to go until half time and if Leicester can get to the break still goalless they will be pretty pleased. They have been comfortably second best tonight.

Good football again from Liverpool as they patiently probe for a way through, and eventually earn a free kick in a very dangerous position as Iborra brings down Coutinho...

SHOT! Coutinho goes for goal himself, but he focuses on power and fires his effort a few yards over the top.

Liverpool have been camped in the Leicester half for the vast majority of this match, but they haven't exactly created a huge amount of clear chances. They have had one or two good sights of goal - and certainly more than Leicester - but perhaps not as many as their dominance might suggest.

Lovely football from Liverpool to launch a counter-attack as Solanke back-heels the ball into the path of Oxlade-Chamberlain, but the former Arsenal man then tries to board the showboat too and flicks it straight to a Leicester defender when looking for Henderson.

CHANCE! Magic from Coutinho to create a big chance in the first and only minute of first-half stoppage time! The Brazilian is tripped on the edge of the box but, while stumbling, manages to produce an exquisite pass to release Solanke in the area. The striker only has the keeper to beat, but he puts too much on his finish and lifts it over the crossbar.

The first half comes to an end at the King Power Stadium, then, and we're still all square between Leicester and Liverpool - although that is not a fair reflection of the match.

Liverpool have been dominant in this game, with 13 shots in the opening 45 minutes and 74% possession to boot. However, the only stat that counts is the scoreline and Liverpool have once again failed to make the breakthrough so far tonight.

Arguably Liverpool's best chance of the half came right at the end of it when Coutinho somehow squeezed a sensational pass through for Solanke while off balance. Solanke only had the goalkeeper to beat, but the angle was also against him and he tried to lift his finish over Hamer, only to send it over the crossbar as well.

Coutinho himself has come close to breaking the deadlock, and the Brazilian has really pulled the strings so far. As early as the sixth minute Coutinho danced his way into the box and was given room to shoot, but Hamer made a relatively straightforward save.

Indeed, for all of Liverpool's dominance so far tonight, all of Hamer's saves have been fairly routine.

As for Leicester, they have shown very little in an attacking sense and I wouldn't be surprised to see a change at the break from Craig Shakespeare. The hosts have been so disappointing so far, and the only positive for them to take from that first half is that they are still level at the break.

KICKOFF: Leicester get us back underway for this second half, and the first thing to tell you is that there has been a change - but it comes for Liverpool.

Ben Woodburn, who made headlines for Wales during the international break, comes on in place of Coutinho, who pulled the strings in that first half.

Leicester are immediately on the front foot at the start of the second half and Gray wins a free kick in a dangerous position...

SHOT! The anticipation levels rise inside the King Power, but Gray's free kick is nowhere near troubling Ward.

Liverpool win a couple of corners in quick succession, but their delivery is disappointing - as it has been all evening from those types of situations. Ulloa clears one at the near post, but he then stays down despite having no Liverpool players around him.

Wijnaldum is also receiving treatment during this stoppage in play having been caught with a knee in the back from Hamer.

Play finally gets back underway and Liverpool play a corner short this time, but the eventual cross into the box is still poor. Wijnaldum is back on, but it doesn't look as though Ulloa will return.

LEICESTER SUB: Sure enough, on comes Shinji Okazaki in Ulloa's place.

SHOT! Much better from Leicester now. Gray darts forward down the middle and cuts onto his left foot past Klavan before dragging an effort a couple of yards wide.

YELLOW CARD! Grujic is the first name in the book for a lunging challenge on Ndidi. No complaints there.

The introduction of Okazaki has made a real difference for Leicester. The hosts were so lethargic with Ulloa and Slimani up front, but that is one word that can never be used to describe Okazaki. They look a lot more lively now.

The decision to take Coutinho off has also had an impact on this game. Liverpool are no longer in such control of the game and, while they are still seeing the lion's share of possession, they look a lot less dangerous with it.

Not much to report in the last few minutes here. Leicester are seeing more of the ball, and more of the game is being played in the middle third than before. It looked like a matter of time before Liverpool broke the deadlock on the first half, but right now it is anyone's game.

I said that Okazaki has made an impact since coming on, and now it looks as though he could be the match-winner tonight!

Liverpool deal well with the initial delivery into their box this time, but it is hoisted straight back in and Morgan keeps it alive. His header finds Iborra, who in turn nods it down to Okazaki to scuff his finish into the bottom corner. It looks as though the final touch came off Robertson, which left ward little chance as the ball bobbled into the corner.

SHOT! Liverpool look for an immediate response, and Oxlade-Chamberlain comes close to providing it. Iborra tries an acrobatic clearance on the edge of his own area but completely misses the ball, which instead arrives to Oxlade-Chamberlain. The Liverpool man takes it down and quickly gets his shot away, but it drifts a yard over the top.

Just over 20 minutes remaining for Liverpool to get back into this one, but they have shown very few signs of that in this second half. The visitors didn't make the most of their spell on top in the first half, and it looks as though they may pay for that.

Should the scoreline stay the same here then it would make for a really disappointing 10 days for Liverpool. Defeat to Manchester City, two home draws and an exit from the EFL Cup in that period as things stand.

CLOSE! Liverpool take a quick free kick and almost benefit from it too as Woodburn cuts inside from the left and curls a good effort narrowly over the top. Not far away at all from the youngster.

LIVERPOOL SUB: Big moment for Danny Ings as he returns from 11 months out with a serious knee injury, replacing Wijnaldum.

YELLOW CARD! Klavan joins Grujic in the book for a block on Okazaki.

CHANCE! Almost a dream return from Ings as he darts to the front post to try to get on the end of Woodburn's delivery. It would have to be an unorthodox and unnatural effort as he tries to twist his body and get enough power on a glancing header to help it past the keeper, but he doesn't get any contact on it in the end.

PIck that one out! If the first goal was scrappy, this is anything but as Slimani blasts Leicester to within touching distance of the fourth round!

Okazaki is again involved as he nudges the ball into the path of the club-record signing, who drives past Grujic knowing that the Liverpool midfielder can't touch him as he is already on a yellow card. Slimani continues on his way and then unleashes an unstoppable effort into the top corner. Stunning strike.

SAVE! Almost a third for Leicester, who can smell blood here! Gray is the man to come close, cutting inside onto his right foot and trying to curl one into the bottom corner which Ward needs to get a crucial fingertip to.

SAVE! Ward is called into action again here, but this is a more routine stop as he denies Okazaki.

LEICESTER SUB: Leicester's lead is comfortable enough now to give a debut to 19-year-old Hamza Choudhury, who replaces Ndidi.

Just four minutes of this match remain now, and Liverpool don't look like getting back into this one. The withdrawal of Coutinho at half time made a real difference to this game, but even before that the visitors had failed to make the most of their dominance.

Woodburn wants a handball for an effort blocked by a Leicester player right on the edge of the box, but the referee says no. If Liverpool are to stage a dramatic late comeback then they need a goal now.

The referee indicates a minimum of four minutes added time.

YELLOW CARD! Iborra picks up a late yellow card.

Stuart Attwell brings an end to the match at the King Power Stadium, and it is Leicester who progress into the fourth round of the EFL Cup courtesy of a 2-0 win over Liverpool.

It was the cliched game of two halves this evening, with Liverpool dominating the first without making it count before Leicester hit back in the second. The match hinged on two substitutions; Liverpool's control waned when Coutinho was taken off at half time and Okazaki's enforced introduction breathed new life into Leicester.

Okazaki went on to score the opening and played a part in the second goal too, which Slimani blasted into the top corner.

Right, that is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as Leicester send Liverpool crashing out of the EFL Cup at the first hurdle.

I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to check back in tomorrow night for more EFL Cup action - including the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and the Manchester clubs in action.

From me, though, it is goodbye for now!