FA Cup
Diallo scores winner deep in extra time to send Man United into FA Cup semis
Amad Diallo scored deep in extra time after Marcus Rashford made amends for a bad miss to lift Manchester United to a breathless 4-3 victory over north west rivals Liverpool and into the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday.
United’s victory at Old Trafford kept alive their only hope of silverware this season and spoiled Liverpool’s dreams of hoisting four trophies in manager Juergen Klopp’s final campaign with the team.
Erik ten Hag’s side will face Championship (second-tier) outfit Coventry City in the semis after they upset Wolverhampton Wanderers 3-2 on Saturday.
“Listen to the noise, you can tell what a big game it is, a huge occasion,” Rashford told ITV. “I haven’t had the season I wanted but nights like this at Old Trafford are what it’s all about.
“We have to get something out of this season… it’s a massive game in the history of Manchester United.”
Scott McTominay gave United a 10th-minute lead but Liverpool turned the game on its head with goals three minutes apart from Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah before halftime.
Liverpool dominated the second half and should have put the game to bed, but United poured on the pressure late in normal time and Antony spun in the box before slotting home past two Liverpool players in the 87th minute — the Brazilian’s first goal at Old Trafford in over a year — to force extra time.
Harvey Elliott brought the 9,000 travelling Liverpool fans to their feet in the 105th minute when his long-range rocket deflected off Christian Eriksen’s foot and between Harry Maguire’s legs into the bottom corner.
But once again 12-times FA Cup winners United — who are four places below Liverpool in a Premier League season to forget for Ten Hag’s side — kept their foot on the gas.
“Super intense,” Klopp said. “We used the time and adapted well. We were outstanding but we had to finish the game off and we didn’t.”
Rashford, who had missed a sitter late in normal time, made it 3-3 in the 112th minute, calmly slotting a picture-perfect pass from McTominay into the bottom corner before running to United’s fans, where he was mobbed.
“Rashford is resilient, he keeps going, normally he finishes those moments but he kept going for another chance. That inspired the other players,” Ten Hag said.
Then Alejandro Garnacho and Diallo charged up the field on a breakaway after a Liverpool corner with Diallo firing home the winner in the 120th minute to a deafening roar from the Old Trafford faithful, leaving Klopp looking stunned on the sideline.
“We deserved this win, we played very good, it was one of the best games of the season. It’s the best goal of my life it’s a really important moment,” Diallo said. “You need to believe in every single moment, this is football.”
Diallo was then sent off after receiving a second yellow card for his celebrations.
“We always have belief, the problem is we have not been consistent with our performances,” United captain Bruno Fernandes told ITV. “We give 100% we always give everything but at this club we always have to have high standards. It’s a part of the game to be criticised, that’s why you play for Manchester United.
“This season has not been at the level we want but we want to improve. We have always said our goal was to get into the top four and try to win the FA Cup, we will do all we can for those goals. The FA Cup is a big trophy for this club.”
-Reuters
The first weekend of semi-automated offside decisions in English soccer descended into confusion on Saturday as Bournemouth had a goal ruled out after a record eight-minute VAR check.
Bournemouth, who eventually beat Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers on penalties in the FA Cup fifth round after a 1-1 draw, thought they had doubled their lead when defender Milos Kerkez scored in the 35th-minute goal.
However, new technology could not be used because the six-yard area was too crowded and VAR officials had to revert to manually drawing lines before disallowing the goal.
Fellow defender Dean Huijsen was adjudged to have been in an offside position as Kerkez’s effort brushed his shoulder before going in to the net.
The VAR check was further complicated as VAR officials Timothy Wood and Darren England also had to also examine the possibility of hand balls prior to the tight offside call.
Both sets of fans voiced their disapproval at the interminable wait, chanting “it’s not football any more” and “this is embarrassing”.
Referee Sam Barrott, who eventually announced the decision to the crowd via a microphone, had to explain to the respective managers and players what was happening during the delay.
-Reuters
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FA Cup giant-killers Plymouth Argyle drew Premier League champions Manchester City on Monday as the second-tier side’s fifth-round reward for a shock defeat of Liverpool at the weekend.
Holders Manchester United will host Fulham at Old Trafford in one of at least three all-Premier League clashes, with League Cup finalists Newcastle United at home to top-tier rivals Brighton & Hove Albion.
Bournemouth will host Wolverhampton Wanderers in another all-top-flight encounter.
Struggling Plymouth caused one of the great upsets of the FA Cup on Sunday when they beat a second-string Liverpool 1-0, ending the Premier League leaders’ hopes of a quartet of trophies this season.
The Pilgrims are bottom of the Championship but City, who reached the fifth round with a 2-1 win at third-tier Leyton Orient on Saturday after going behind early on, have been misfiring this season.
There will be a fourth all-Premier League clash if Nottingham Forest avoid trouble at League One (third tier) Exeter City on Tuesday, with Ipswich Town awaiting the winners.
Aston Villa, who ended Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes on Sunday, host second tier Cardiff City.
The fifth round matches will be played on the weekend of March 1 and 2.
Last 16 draw:
- Preston North End v Burnley
- Aston Villa v Cardiff City
- Doncaster Rovers or Crystal Palace v Millwall
- Manchester United v Fulham
- Newcastle United v Brighton & Hove Albion
- Bournemouth v Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Manchester City v Plymouth Argyle
-Reuters
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A much-changed Liverpool were dumped out of the FA Cup by struggling second-tier side Plymouth Argyle, who pulled off a stunning 1-0 fourth-round win at Home Park on Sunday that put an end to the visitors’ hopes of a quadruple.
The hosts took the lead in the 53rd minute after they were awarded a penalty for a handball by midfielder Harvey Elliott and Ryan Hardie stepped up to send Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher the wrong way.
Premier League leaders Liverpool were bereft of ideas and had just one shot on target in the opening half, with Plymouth keeper Conor Hazard making a diving save in the 36th minute to keep out James McConnell’s long-range shot.
Ahead of the Merseyside derby against Everton on Wednesday, Liverpool made wholesale changes with Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker and Alexis Mac Allister among the big-names rested and left at home.
Liverpool, who were also forced into an early change when defender Joe Gomez went down injured, failed to create many chances in a scrappy encounter as Plymouth, who sit bottom of the second-tier Championship, gradually grew in confidence.
Arne Slot’s side switched gears after going down but Hazard proved to be the hero for Plymouth as the Northern Irishman brilliantly kept out Diogo Jota’s volley in added time, as well as a header from Darwin Nunez.
With Liverpool top of the Premier League, having strolled into the Champions League’s last 16 and reached the League Cup final, some fans and pundits had begun to speculate about a potential quadruple.
Plymouth’s remarkable victory, however, brought a shuddering halt to talk of clean sweep of silverware for Slot’s side, who had only lost three games all season, prior to Sunday.
Meanwhile, there was no surprise in the other FA Cup fourth-round tie with Premier League Wolverhampton Wanderers beating second-tier Championship side Blackburn Rovers 2-0 at Ewood Park.
There was little to separate the two teams in the opening minutes before Wolves hit Blackburn with two rapid-fire goals through midfielder Joao Gomes in the 33rd minute and seconds later via forward Matheus Cunha.
Blackburn defender Dominic Hyam had the ball in the back of the net in the 19th minute, but his celebrations were cut short when the linesman’s flag went up for offside.
-Reuters
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