Liverpool red- faced
West Ham score late winner to eliminate Reds from FA Cup
London, Feb, 10: Angelo Ogbonna headed home in stoppage time of extra time as West Ham United stunned a youthful Liverpool team 2- 1 in Tuesday’s FA Cup fourthround replay at Upton Park.
Philippe Coutinho’s clever free- kick had cancelled out Michail Antonio’s volleyed opener for West Ham and the game was seconds from a penalty shootout when Dimitri Payet curled a free- kick into the visitors’ box from the right and Ogbonna rose at the back post to head in the winner.
It was the Italian centreback’s first goal since signing from Juventus last year and it earned Slaven Bilic’s side a trip to Blackburn Rovers in the fifth round.
“I can explain my feelings, and I can’t at the same time,” said Bilic.
“It is great, for me a really great game of football. It was a classic FA Cup tie. It will go into the history of West Ham’s greatest games,” Bilic said.
West Ham had never previously beaten Liverpool in the FA Cup, but they have now overcome them three times this season, having beaten them twice in the league prior to the 00 draw in their first FA Cup encounter.
Back in the dug- out after having his appendix removed on Saturday, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp watched his young charges push West Ham all the way until falling at the very last hurdle. “It’s hard,” Klopp said. “We were the better team, created chances and played good football, but we didn’t use them.
“It’s not easy because we were only here to win. You don’t have to show your best — you just have to go to the next round,” Klopp added.
Despite Klopp making 10 changes and entrusting the midfield to 18- year- old Pedro Chirivella and the callow pair of Kevin Stewart and Joao Carlos Teixeira, Liverpool made an assured start. The game was open and the woodwork was rattled again at both ends — Coutinho for Liverpool, Payet with a free- kick for West Ham — before the hosts took the lead in firsthalf injury time.
Enner Valencia wriggled his way to the byline on the left and dug out a cross to the back post, where Antonio leapt to meet it with a crisp side- foot volley that flashed past Simon Mignolet.
In the second hald, Coutinho deviously stroking a 20- yard freekick beneath the wall and in after Pedro Obiang was deemed to have fouled Benteke.
The teams continued to exchange chances — Randolph parrying from Benteke and Sturridge, Valencia heading over and Mark Noble testing Mignolet.
The best chances fell to Benteke. Twice within a minute he should have scored, first volleying wide with the goal then shooting tamely at Randolph and Ogbonna made him pay.