Liverpool are into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals after surviving a nerve-shredding penalty shootout against Chelsea, with Giorgi Mamardashvili emerging as a decisive figure on a night when Andoni Iraola’s rotated side struggled to find any rhythm.

The tie finished 1-1 after 90 minutes, with Cody Gakpo cancelling out Morgan Rogers’s first-half penalty. Neither side could find a winner in a largely disjointed second half, leaving the contest to be settled from 12 yards.

Ryan Gravenberch’s missed penalty threatened to derail Liverpool’s hopes, but Mamardashvili came to their rescue by saving Emmanuel Emegha’s effort. Joe Gomez then converted to put the hosts in front, leaving Wesley Fofana needing to score to keep Chelsea alive. He missed, sparking celebrations at Anfield as Liverpool secured a 6-5 shootout victory.

The result sends Liverpool into the last eight, but the performance offered a reminder of the risks involved in making wholesale changes, particularly with another demanding fixture against Arsenal approaching on Sunday.

Iraola made seven changes from the side that beat Brighton 2-0 at the weekend, handing opportunities to the likes of Mamardashvili, Gomez, Kostas Tsimikas, Trey Nyoni, James McConnell, Lewis Koumas and Rio Ngumoha.

The intention was understandable. With Liverpool playing every three days, rotation was necessary, and the Carabao Cup offered a chance to give minutes to players outside the regular starting line-up. Yet the first half was a struggle for both sides, with neither able to establish any meaningful attacking momentum.

Liverpool moved the ball without much penetration, while Chelsea were similarly short of invention. The opening 20 minutes passed without a shot from either team, underlining just how little threat was being created in the final third.

Chelsea eventually registered an attempt through Moisés Caicedo, who volleyed wide after a cleverly worked free-kick involving Jordan Henderson and Malo Gusto. It was a brief moment of ingenuity in a game that had otherwise lacked urgency.

The deadlock was finally broken when Gravenberch brought Caicedo down inside the penalty area. Rogers stepped up and sent Mamardashvili the wrong way, giving Chelsea a lead that their limited attacking output had scarcely suggested was coming.

For Liverpool, it was a needless setback in a game where they had struggled to create anything themselves. Their response, however, was immediate.

Liverpool finally found some energy after falling behind, with Joe Gomez’s long throw causing problems in the Chelsea penalty area. Nyoni collected the loose ball and struck a volley that was blocked, forcing a corner.

From the resulting set piece, the ball struck a Chelsea hand and Liverpool were awarded a penalty of their own. Gakpo converted, restoring parity and transforming the atmosphere after a deeply underwhelming opening period.

The equaliser was followed by Liverpool’s best spell of the first half. Gakpo tested Mike Penders from distance, with the Chelsea goalkeeper producing a good save to ensure the teams went into the interval level.

Liverpool had been gifted a way back into the contest by the sequence of events, but the improvement in their urgency was significant. For the first time, they were moving the ball with purpose and forcing Chelsea to defend under pressure.

The challenge after half-time was to build on that response rather than allow the game to drift back into the same pattern.

The second half began with Mamardashvili called into action, the Georgian reacting well to deny Rogers after Pedro Neto had driven forward and supplied the Chelsea attacker on the edge of the area.

Liverpool eventually created their clearest opportunity when Bradley Barcola and Florian Wirtz were introduced. Barcola made an immediate impact, delivering a cross that found Ronald Araújo in the penalty area, but Penders produced an excellent save to keep the score level.

Chelsea threatened on the counter almost immediately, with Gomez making a crucial block to deny Rogers. The exchange captured the growing end-to-end nature of the tie: Liverpool had more attacking threat with their substitutes on the pitch, but they were leaving spaces for Chelsea to exploit.

Barcola went close himself with a powerful, driven effort from the edge of the box, only for Penders to make another important stop. It was a promising spell for Liverpool, although it did not translate into sustained pressure or a decisive second goal.

Instead, Chelsea increasingly looked the more dangerous side. Josh Acheampong fired wide after breaking forward, before Mamardashvili produced an excellent save to deny substitute Marco Palestra. Levi Colwill then headed wide from the resulting corner as Liverpool struggled to regain control.

Wirtz came close to providing a late breakthrough at the other end. A looping delivery from Tsimikas was nodded down by Gakpo into the German’s path, but Colwill reacted superbly to block his effort.

It was a vital intervention from the Chelsea defender, and the final significant opening of a second half in which neither side could find the quality required to settle the tie.

Liverpool’s progression ultimately depended on their composure from the penalty spot — and the intervention of their goalkeeper.

Both sides converted their opening attempts, with Alexis Mac Allister and Alexander Isak scoring for Liverpool while Neto and Rogers replied for Chelsea. The shootout then swung dramatically when Gravenberch missed, placing Liverpool under pressure.

Mamardashvili kept the hosts in contention by saving Emegha’s penalty. Gomez subsequently scored to leave Chelsea needing a response from Fofana, but the defender failed to convert and Liverpool were through.

It was an important moment for Mamardashvili, who had already made several valuable saves during the match. His intervention in the shootout rescued Liverpool after a night when their attacking play had been inconsistent and Chelsea had repeatedly threatened to take control.

There will be relief, too, for Iraola. Liverpool have advanced, and the cup run remains alive, but their passage to the quarter-finals was far from comfortable.

The rotated line-up struggled to impose itself for long stretches, and the second-half performance raised questions about how effectively Liverpool managed the game once they had restored parity. The introductions of Wirtz and Barcola improved their attacking threat, but they did not prevent Chelsea from creating the better openings late on.

Ultimately, cup football is often about surviving the moments that threaten to end a campaign. Liverpool did that at Anfield, with Mamardashvili and Gomez helping to turn a precarious shootout into a winning one.

They can now look forward to the quarter-final draw. The immediate focus, however, returns to the Premier League and Sunday’s meeting with Arsenal — a fixture that will demand considerably more control and consistency than Liverpool showed for much of this contest.