It may not be the high point of the English Football Calender but it is the first domestic trophy of the season, and to Liverpool fans at least, it has always been a highly regarded competition. Though recent years have seen the earlier stages of the competitions looked upon with a certain amount of scorn by some of the big teams, for those that make it to the last four, it suddenly becomes an important competition as the prospect of picking up silverware becomes a reality. For the teams not expected to pick up a European place, it is the perfect way them to enter the UEFA Cup and gain valuable European experience.

For the fans, the beaten ones will tell you how the Carling Cup doesn't matter, a cliche they have picked up from the managers who put it rightly at the bottom of their priority list at the start of the season, but ask any player on the pitch today if he wants to win this trophy, and his answer will be "HELL YES!". For many of the players, to win the trophy would earn them their first winners medal in English football, and for either Liverpool or Chelsea, a win could act as a catalyst to go on and reach the objectives they set out at the beginning of the season.

It's pretty much a given that I'll be rooting for Liverpool today, after we were robbed on New Years Day by a lucky lucky Chelsea team, there is no doubt the Liverpool players will be looking to make amends.

Enjoy the game everyone.