Premier League leaders Manchester United sealed their place in the next round of the FA Cup after emerging victorious over fierce rivals Liverpool by a scoreline of 3-2.
After a relatively quiet affair at Anfield just a week ago, the Red Devils and the Reds played out a thoroughly entertaining game of football at Old Trafford. The five-goal thriller ultimately needed a special strike from star man Bruno Fernandes to settle the tie.
The first half was a highly-contested 45 minutes of football that saw both sides get on the scoresheet. Mohamed Salah broke Liverpool’s goal drought with an excellent finish as he lobbed the ball past an onrushing Dean Henderson after latching onto a precise through ball from Roberto Firmino.
However, it was the home side that saw a higher number of attempts in the first half as they crafted a number of opportunities, particularly on the counter, needing Alisson Becker to be at his best to keep Manchester United at bay. The Brazilian could not do much to prevent the equaliser, though, as a majestic switch of play from Marcus Rashford found Mason Greenwood on the far right and the Englishman slotted it past Alisson.
The second half got off to a fast start after Manchester United took the lead after a swift counter-attack. The scorer and provider for the first goal switched roles as Rashford got on the end of a long ball from Greenwood and the English star capitalised on an error from Rhys Williams to give United the lead.
Liverpool sparked to life after this goal as Salah helped Liverpool claw back into the game with another smart finish to top off a superb team move after Edinson Cavani gave away the ball cheaply.
Jurgen Klopp’s men continued to push forward in numbers and the injection of Sadio Mane’s directness and pace helped add another valuable threat to their front line. After another golden opportunity for Mo Salah to score and make it a hat-trick, Solskjaer brought in the cavalry and opted to sub on superstar midfielder Bruno Fernandes and Fred.
Fernandes eventually did the damage to consign Liverpool to defeat after expertly converting a free-kick just outside Liverpool’s penalty area just minutes after coming off the bench. The Portuguese smashed the ball into the far corner leaving Alisson with little hope of preventing the goal that would eventually prove to be the difference between the two sides.
Liverpool threw caution to the wind and threw all they had at their failed hosts, but they could not find a way to get past Harry Maguire and co. In fact, it was Cavani who came closest to getting his name on the scoresheet after a darting header to meet a cross from Fernandes, but the post came to a hapless Alisson’s rescue to keep Liverpool in the game.
The 3-2 win sealed Manchester United’s progression to the next round of the FA Cup at the expense of their fierce rivals Liverpool. They are set to play West Ham at the same venue in the next round.
Here are some of the best tweets from the game!
Published 25 Jan 2021, 00:38 IST
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