Young midfielder Ebou Adams had a smile on his face again last night after firing Norwich City's Under-23s into the semi-finals of the Premier League Cup.

Adams was distraught at the final whistle at Carrow Road on Friday after the Canaries had bowed out of the International Cup at the last four stage following a 1-0 home loss to their Sunderland counterparts.

But City now have another big game to look forward to after Adams' superb 10th minute strike earned them an excellent 1-0 win against Liverpool at Chester City's Deva Stadium.

Adams set the game alight when he drove forward before firing home from distance and the visitors – with no first teamers to strenghthen their ranks – went on to impress after that to seal a hard-fought win.

'I thought we were terrific on the night, especially in the first half when we caused them a whole host of problems,' academy manager Richard Money told City's website after the game.

'We probably should have gone in at more than 1-0 in front and with that score you're always liable to lose something. Even if you continue to play well the result can remain in the balance, but we defended really well.

'They only really had one clear sight of goal, so it was a really good performance both offensively and defensively. It's a great result against a very good team and I'm very pleased as it was probably the toughest tie of the round.

'As I said on Friday, it's testament to how they've done that they lost a semi-final then their next game was a quarter-final. To come through it, with a chance of another trophy, is a really good effort.'

The draw for the semi-final is set to be made at 2pm today, with City to face one of Reading, Swansea or Portsmouth.

City: Oxborough, Ramsay, Efete, Odusina, Lewis, Crowe, Adams, McGrandles, Grant, Jaiyesimi, Ashley-Seal. Subs not used: Hallett (GK), Kamal, Hlynsson, Aarons, Aransibia.