Arsenal 0 Liverpool 2

Arsenal 0 Liverpool 2: Diogo Jota’s brace sets up a Carabao Cup final clash with Chelsea, as the Reds advance to Wembley Stadium.

The Night of the Living Dead was meant to be the biggest comeback since Lazarus, but it turned out to be The Night of the Living Dead.

Arsenal can now put the silver shine away for another year after Diogo Jota gave them a rigorous finishing lesson.

Because it is Liverpool who will face Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on February 27 at Wembley Stadium.

Mikel Arteta may have pulled off a little miracle by fielding an almost full-strength lineup just five days after declaring he couldn’t even muster 11 players for the North London derby.

But it wasn’t enough to prevent the Merseysiders from completing a simple victory that highlighted the gap between the two clubs.

Jota’s two goals were enough to see off the tired Gunners, who were clearly still suffering from the affects of their recent injury crisis.

To make matters worse, Arteta will be without both Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey for the match against Burnley on Sunday.

Xhaka has already been suspended for his red card in the first leg of the semi-final at Anfield last week.

Partey, who came on as a late replacement for Emile Smith Rowe and was booked twice in the space of three minutes, will now join him on the naughty step.

It rounded off a dreadful few days for Ghanaian international Partey, who had been eliminated from the African Cup of Nations by Comoros and had only arrived in London seven hours before kick-off.

The goalless first leg last week marked the first time Liverpool had failed to score at Anfield since April of last year.

With Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, and Divock Origi all ruled out, Klopp had to devise a new strategy for breaking past Arsenal’s staunch defense.

That meant a run-out for 17-year-old Kaide Gordon in what was undoubtedly his most important encounter yet.

What a night it was for the England youth international to test his nerves in front of a sell-out Emirates crowd.

Klopp’s faith in his young prodigy, however, was steadfast, no doubt inspired by the way Curtis Jones, another youngster, was rising to the occasion.

Arsenal’s desire to keep playing out from the back, despite an alarming tendency to surrender possession on the edge of their own area, was clearly beneficial to the youngsters.

Arteta’s side started well and came close to scoring in the fourth minute when Alexandre Lacazette’s free-kick hit the crossbar after Bukayo Saka was taken down on the edge of the area by Andrew Robertson.

They were unable to maintain their early dominance, though, and eventually lost momentum to a Liverpool side that always appeared to be a threat on the counter.

In the 14th minute, Fabinho’s powerful header was turned in by Joel Matip from close range, giving the visitors the lead.

However, the former Cameroon international had drifted offside before placing the finishing touch, and his effort was correctly disallowed.

It was a warning shot across Arsenal’s bows, but they ignored it, and five minutes later they were in serious trouble.

Jota’s slaloming run past Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White was set off by Fabinho’s smart pass, and though his low shot lacked strength, it had just enough on it to sneak into the bottom corner.

It was Liverpool’s 44th goal against Arsenal in 17 games under Klopp, and it was a goal from which the hosts never seemed to recover.

As he was about to pull the trigger, Gabriel Martinelli was stopped in his tracks by a well timed Matip challenge.

When Saka finally got himself into a shooting position, Robertson effortlessly stopped his attempt, and another onslaught fizzled out to nothing.

As he slid deeper and deeper in an attempt to break Liverpool’s grasp on proceedings, Lacazette was cautioned for a reckless late challenge on the excellent Jones.

And he had a chance to achieve that goal shortly after the half-time break, when Sambi Lokonga’s ball over the top played him in.

The Frenchman’s initial touch, though, was not matched by the brilliance of his finish, which he slammed over from ten yards.

Jota skinned White again to tee up Gordon right in front of goal, and he should have been made to regret it.

However, the youngster’s inexperience was evident when he leaned back and lifted a rising shot well over the bar.

As Liverpool attempted to put the tie to bed, Ibrahima Konate, a half-time substitute for Matip, struck the base of the post with a strong header from Trent Alexander-59th-minute Arnold’s corner.

Weary Arsenal huffed and puffed without ever threatening goalie Caoimhin Kelleher, so they didn’t have to be concerned.

Jota collected Alexander-long Arnold’s ball on his chest before lifting his shot past the advancing Ramsdale in the 78th minute, putting any doubts to rest.