Brendan Rodgers: 'Diego Costa lucky to avoid red card'

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has slammed Chelsea striker Diego Costa for stamping on two of his players in Tuesday's League Cup semi-final defeat.

Costa appeared to tread on Emre Can and Martin Skrtel in separate incidents at Stamford Bridge last night, both of which went unpunished by referee Michael Oliver.

Branislav Ivanovic headed the only goal of the game in the fourth minute of extra time as the Blues secured a 1-0 win on the night - 2-1 on aggregate - but Rodgers says that Chelsea owe the win to good fortune.

"These things happen in the game but I think anyone watching it would not like to see what we've seen Diego Costa do," Rodgers told Sky Sports News. "Not just on Martin Skrtel but on Emre Can, a young player who was clearly stamped on.

"You don't want to see that. There's no need for it. You can easily land somewhere else without having to directly land on an opponent's ankle.

"It's disappointing to see that on the replay and he was probably very fortunate the referee and the linesman didn't see it."

Jose Mourinho's side will face either Tottenham Hotspur or Sheffield United in the final, with both teams poised to square off at Bramall Lane tonight.