Liverpool will play two games in 24 hours after a date for their Carabao Cup quarter-final was confirmed.
Jurgen Klopp’s side are set to take on Aston Villa in the last eight on Tuesday, December 17, which comes 24 hours before their Club World Cup involvement.
It means that the Reds are set to play in two different competitions in the space of 24 hours due to their appearance at the FIFA tournament later that week.
Klopp previously claimed that Liverpool may have to to withdraw from the competition, which they have won a record eight times, over the fixture clash.
Anfield chiefs mooted alternative dates with the EFL, who operate the Carabao Cup, in order to avoid clashing with the semi-final in Qatar on December 18.
But in a statement on Tuesday, the club conceded that their attempts to have the game moved to a less congested period had been unsuccessful.
“We will be utilising two playing squads simultaneously, with one squad participating in the FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar and another in the Carabao Cup,” read a Liverpool statement.
“The club would like to take this opportunity to underline that while this is not an ideal scenario, it is an outcome which was arrived at with the best interests of the competition, our fellow clubs and ourselves as the sole motivating factor.
“We would like to thank the EFL for their efforts to accommodate us and we can confirm alternative dates were discussed.
“But ultimately none were considered suitable without compromising the scheduling of the competition itself or placing an undue strain on our playing staff.”
The EFL responded by revealing that they had held discussion with Liverpool ‘for a number of months’ about a suitable date for the mid-December fixture.
“The EFL is very aware of the challenges clubs face when participating across numerous competitions at home and abroad,” said Dave Cookson, the EFL’s Football Services Director.
“And whilst we will always look to work with clubs our overwhelming priority has to be to protect the integrity of the Carabao Cup and ensure any decisions taken are in the best interests of the competition.
“The EFL has long-acknowledged that this competition provides those clubs with large resources with the opportunity to rotate their squads knowing that teams who wish to be successful have to be prepared to play a large amount of matches over the course of the season.
“Therefore, in these exceptional circumstances the decision was taken having received clear assurances from the club that there will be a level of consistency in team selection, a feature which is key to ensuring integrity is maintained.
“We recognise the challenges Liverpool face in this matter and appreciate the efforts made to find a practical solution.”