Koeman: Steven Caulker to start Southampton's cup quarter-final with Liverpool
Steven Caulker will be trusted to lead Southampton's defence in the absence of captain Jose Fonte in Wednesday's Capital One Cup quarter-final against Liverpool.
The Portuguese was forced off during Saturday's 3-1 Premier League defeat at Manchester City with cut on his knee that required stitches.
Fonte will, as a result, be unavailable for selection on Wednesday, so Caulker, who impressed manager Ronald Koeman as his replacement at City, is to retain his place.
The quarter-final clash represents a rare opportunity for the promising central defender following his loan move from QPR in the summer.
The Capital One Cup tie with Liverpool will be just Caulker's fifth start for Saints - a tough match that the defender approaches buoyed by Koeman's confidence.
"I was very pleased how Steven came onto the pitch and did a great job against City and he will start," Koeman, an elite-level defender at his peak, said.
"Maybe Steven is as strong as (Christian) Benteke, if he plays. And that's not a problem for Steven because he is physically a strong defender and has the confidence to start.
"Yes, of course (he had to be patient). Maybe he had some difficulties in the beginning and of course Jose was in front and Virgil (van Dijk) in front in both positions Steven can play.
"I'm not a manager who changes a lot if the team is doing well, but always the question to the players is when they get the chance, you have to take it.
"That's also the reason after Saturday that I said to Steven he will start."
The tie will see a number of familiar faces return to St Mary's, having swapped the south coast for Liverpool in recent years.
Many believe the departures of key players such as Dejan Lovren, Adam Lallana and Nathaniel Clyne has prevented Southampton from becoming more successful.
Winning the Capital One Cup this season - and Koeman has made no secret this is a priority - would not only represent their first major trophy since the 1976 FA Cup, but would help them progress beyond their present level.
"First, (winning a trophy) is well deserved for the club, all the people in the club, all the fans," the Dutchman said.
"Second, of course, it is the next step. That is one of the meetings we had with the team at the start of the season - about improving, being better than last year.
"We know it is difficult, really very difficult, to reach the same level, because in one-and-a-half years we lost 10, 11 players, a whole team.
"It's difficult (to lose players). When I came to the club, I knew already that we would lose some good players.
"We lost, after last year, (Morgan) Schneiderlin and Clyne, important players for the team.
"Of course, we would like to keep the best players, because that means that we can grow and grow."
Liverpool have lost only one of the opening 10 matches of Jurgen Klopp's reign, but that defeat means the German is not getting carried away by his start at Anfield.
The Reds replaced Brendan Rodgers with the former Borussia Dortmund boss back in October and have claimed impressive away victories over Chelsea and Manchester City during his first two months at the helm.
Having presided over six wins and three draws, Klopp has garnered plenty of praise for quickly transforming the side in his mould.
However, the German is unwilling to blow his own trumpet because last month's 2-1 home defeat to Alan Pardew's Palace still weighs on his mind.
"Sometimes I would really like to change my personality but I can't forget this loss against Crystal Palace," he said. "If we had won this, I would say it was okay."
Klopp was hired less than eight weeks ago and has had little time to get his Reds squad adapted to the pressing style which took Dortmund to back-to-back Bundesliga titles and a Champions League final.
And he concedes he does not want to flood his squad with the nuances of his philosophy while the season is still ongoing.
"I think we've done not too bad until now," Klopp said. "We give as much information as we could, as we should. With information, if I would say every day all the things I know, it is for sure too much.
"It's timing, the right information is very important, of course. We don't want that they have to take their papers on the pitch. It's football.
"We have to play football. This word 'playing' is everything that you need."
Liverpool are expected to start goalkeeper Adam Bogdan and Philippe Coutinho (hamstring) could return to the squad.
Lucas Leiva is back from suspension while Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson (both foot) should be in the squad again.
Source: PAR
