Jakub Kiwior’s own-goal and Luis Diaz’s strike saw Liverpool scrape past Arsenal in a tense Third Round tie at the Emirates Stadium in 2023-24 FA Cup.
Arsenal dominated much of the match amidst wasted chances which was punished in the 80th minute, as Kiwior nodded Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick into his own net.
Diaz wrapped up Liverpool’s victory with a 95th minute strike from a quick counter-attack move.
Liverpool now are into the hat for the Fourth Round draw which takes place tomorrow (8 January) at 7:50pm GMT, live on ITV1 in the UK.
Speaking to BBC post-match, Jurgen Klopp was pleased with his Reds’ performance as he explained: “I’m super proud. It’s a super difficult draw. Maybe the most difficult we could have got. With all the things we had to consider coming here, Arsenal lined up slightly different, that was smart.
“We changed a bit at half-time. We were really in the game in the second half. We scored the goals and brought the kids on. We fought for 95 minutes. We have a winter break now.”
After a closely fought draw away at Anfield in the Premier League a fortnight ago which left Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta hailing his Gunners for an “unbelievable” performance, Arsenal started the liveliest as Reiss Nelson fired wide from Aaron Ramsdale’s third-minute long ball.
Nelson and Kai Havertz then saw further chances wasted as Arsenal dominated the opening ten minutes, whilst Martin Odegaard smashed a 11th minute shot onto the crossbar after he gathered possession from Bukayo Saka’s miscontrolled attempt at a shot.
Liverpool’s first proper chance eventually came in the 21st minute as Darwin Nunez saw his shot deflected wide, before he nodded wide of the bottom right corner from Harvey Elliott’s subsequent corner-kick.
Arsenal almost won a penalty in the 23rd minute after Alexander-Arnold fouled Nelson, only for referee – John Brooks to snub the Gunners’ penalty appeals.
Bukayo Saka then saw a 27th minute shot saved by Alisson, with the Brazilian goalkeeper then forced to block Ben White’s long-range shot 11 minutes later, from which Havertz nodded the corner wide as Arsenal continued to dominate the first half.
Arteta’s Gunners however failed to find their clinical end product before the break as Odegaard pounced upon a defensive error and teed up Havertz, who dilly dallied for too long and his shot eventually landed in Alisson’s arms.
Liverpool almost punished that wasted chance barely a minute later but Alexander-Arnold smashed his shot onto the crossbar, as the score remained goalless at half-time.
There was little improvement upon the start of the second half as Saka lacked power as he attempted to smash in on-the-turn in the 49th minute, whilst Joe Gomez curled over for Liverpool barely a minute later.
Curtis Jones and Nelson then wasted chances for Liverpool and Arsenal respectively as both teams began to exchange chances in an energetic period of end-to-end action, during which Saka flicked over from Havertz’s cutback pass from a 57th minute free-kick.
Havertz and Saka saw further chances wasted on the hour mark as the German attempted a chipped shot over Alisson after he was played forward by Nelson, but the Brazilian’s flapped save was put over by Saka on the follow-up.
A replay looked likely as the clock ticked down especially after Ramsdale blocked Diaz’s shot, from which Diogo Jota headed the corner-kick onto the bar before Nunez smashed wide on the rebound.
Liverpool continued to turn up the pressure and won a 80th minute free-kick on the left flank, which Alexander-Arnold delivered into the box but Kiwior nodded into his own net from the near-left post to put Klopp’s Reds in front.
Arsenal desperately attempted to chase a late equaliser to claim a replay at Anfield but ultimately failed to keep their FA Cup dreams alive, as Liverpool defensively rode their luck from a 90th minute free-kick which Nunez nodded behind to concede a corner which was cleared.
Liverpool eventually wrapped up their Fourth Round spot with a 95th minute counter-attack, as Jota found Diaz to lash into the top-right corner to further condemn Arsenal’s sloppy display.
What’s Next?
Arsenal now have a two-week break before they resume their bid for the Premier League title on Saturday 20 January, in a home clash against Crystal Palace in a 12:30pm GMT kick-off at Emirates Stadium.
Liverpool turn their attention to the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Fulham at Anfield on Wednesday 10 January at 8pm GMT.
Teams
Arsenal: Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel, Jakub Kiwior (Trossard 88′), Martin Odegaard, Jorginho (Nketiah 81′), Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz (Smith Rowe 88′), Reiss Nelson (Martinelli 62′)
Substitutes: Emile Smith Rowe, Gabriel Martinelli, Eddie Nketiah, Cedric Soares, Leandro Trossard, David Raya, Ethan Nwaneri, Lino Sousa, Reuell Walters
Liverpool: Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Jarrel Quansah, Joe Gomez, Alexis Mac Allister (Gravenberch 59′), Curtis Jones (Clark 75′), Cody Gakpo (Jota 59′), Harvey Elliott (Bradley 75′), Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz
Substitutes: Diogo Jota, Ryan Gravenberch, Bobby Clark, Luke Chambers, Kaide Gordon, James McConnell, Caoimhin Kelleher, Conor Bradley, Trey Nyoni
Referee: John Brooks
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