Battle royale
Old Trafford was treated to a classic FA Cup quarterfinal as the hosts beat Klopp’s men in dramatic fashion.
Manchester United’s latest win against arch-rival Liverpool will etch itself in the competition’s history as one of the most thrilling encounters. United opened the scoring, with Scott Mctominay tapping the ball home from point-blank range from a rebound after Liverpool keeper Caoimhin Kelleher had saved Alejandro Garnacho’s shot from the left.
A roaring Old Trafford did not deter Liverpool’s game plan. The Reds’ possessional dominance seemed to have paid off when Wataru Endo stroked the ball inside the net in the 39th minute after receiving a pass from Salah. However, VAR cancelled the goal after it found that the Egyptian was offside.
It wasn’t long before the crowd was silenced again, after Alexis Mac Allister’s shot, aided by a slight deflection off Kobbie Mainoo, rattled the back of the net in the 44th minute.
With United coping with the disappointment of conceding the equaliser just before halftime, it was dealt another blow in added time. Darwin Nunez forced a good save from Andre Onana, only for Salah to find the net from the rebound.
United had conceded twice within three minutes.
The second-half was turning out to be favourable for Liverpool as Erik Ten Hag’s men found it hard to create any substantial chances. With victory on the horizon, substitute Antony found the bottom corner with a left-footed shot in the 87th minute.
Klopp’s men regained the lead in extra-time, with Harvey Elliott finding the net from distance, after a heavy deflection off Christian Eriksen.
But Marcus Rashford, who missed the chance to win the match for United with possibly the last kick of regulation time, found the net with a low and confident finish to make it 3-3 in the 112th minute.
With a penalty-shootout almost a certainty, the match finally got its defining moment.
Liverpool lost possession in a bid to push for a late winner, as Amad Diallo nicked the ball from Elliott and sent Garnacho on a counter-attack. The Argentine raced through the middle before releasing the ball for Diallo.
The Ivorian maintained his calm despite being under pressure from Conor Bradley, took the ball past the latter and found the far-corner, as the ball hit the inside of the post and rattled the net.