From Manchester pubs to global arenas, Ricky Hatton embodied working-class pride in and out of the ring, but his last round was fought in solitude, writes JOHN WIGHT

by James Nalton
LIVERPOOL will face Fulham in the semifinals of the EFL Cup after trouncing West Ham 5-1 at Anfield on Wednesday.
The first game of the two-legged affair will be played at Anfield on January the 8th, with a return leg in West London on the 22nd.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was full of respect for his upcoming opponents, having learned of the draw while sitting in his post-match press conference.
The two sides have already played out an entertaining 4-3 scoreline in Liverpool’s favour at Anfield in the Premier League earlier this month, and Fulham have since gone on a good run.
“It looks like it will be two spectacular games, the last one was pretty spectacular!” Enthused Klopp.
“Funnily enough, I spoke about it before the game with [West Ham manager] David [Moyes] as well.
“Fulham is extremely well set up, which we felt here, which then West Ham felt a few days later and they were really unlucky against Newcastle.
“They are really strong, a really good team, and they want to go to Wembley as well.”
Liverpool’s win against West Ham was one of their best performances of the season, leading Moyes to describe Klopp’s side as a “really powerful team”.
There was an impressive display from Curtis Jones who netted twice, while Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo, and Mohamed Salah also added their names to the scoresheet.

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