Liverpool continue to battle on four fronts after Jakub Kiwior’s own goal and a stoppage-time strike by Luis Diaz sent them through to the FA Cup fourth round with a 2-0 win at Arsenal.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were without captain Virgil van Dijk and Mohamad Salah, but after they were able to ride their luck in north London, stand-in skipper Trent Alexander-Arnold’s excellent late cross forced the opener and Diaz was able to wrap up a hard-fought victory with a powerful late finish.
It inflicted a fourth defeat in seven matches on Arsenal, who fired another blank despite creating a plethora of chances at the Emirates to leave manager Mikel Arteta with problems to solve ahead of their short mid-season break.
The two Premier League title rivals – choosing not to wear red in support of Arsenal’s anti-knife crime initiative – played out a 1-1 draw at Anfield a fortnight ago and while both managers picked strong teams, a handful of changes were made with Aaron Ramsdale given the nod.
The Gunners goalkeeper was immediately into the thick of the action but in an attacking sense with a wonderful pass sending Reiss Nelson through on goal although he could only fire into the side-netting after rounding Alisson.
Nelson had been given a rare starting berth with Eddie Nketiah dropped and Gabriel Jesus out with a knee injury, which resulted in Kai Havertz leading the line.
Havertz tested Alisson with an early curled effort before the opener should have arrived in the 11th minute.
Bukayo Saka robbed Joe Gomez of possession and found the unmarked Havertz, who teed up Nelson and while Ibrahima Konate slide in, Martin Odegaard was first to the loose ball but he crashed an effort against the crossbar and Liverpool survived.
Klopp’s side waited until midway through the first half for their opening chance when Darwin Nunez headed wide from a Harvey Elliott corner.
It did not mark a shift in the ascendancy though with Havertz wasting a fine opening before Alisson tipped over a stinging drive from Ben White.
From the resulting corner Saka picked out Havertz at the back post, but the Germany international headed wide from six yards.
Not even treatment for Liverpool’s young defender Jarell Quansah halted Arsenal’s momentum with Havertz again denied by Alisson a minute before half-time.
Arsenal very nearly paid for their first-half profligacy when Cody Gakpo teed up Alexander-Arnold but the stand-in captain struck the crossbar with his superb 16-yard strike to ensure it remained goalless at the break.
Liverpool initially came out with improved intent for the second half and Curtis Jones curled over before Nunez flashed an effort wide.
Normal service soon resumed with Saka only able to hook over from a Havertz cross, before Alisson showed his class on the hour mark. Another Havertz delivery took a deflection off Quansah and looked to be heading in until the Reds goalkeeper brilliantly clawed the ball away, with Saka slicing wide on the follow-up.
Frustration was growing at the Emirates and as Klopp turned to his bench with Diogo Jota and Ryan Gravenberch introduced, Arteta made his first roll of the dice.
Gabriel Martinelli’s entrance injected renewed hope for an agitated home crowd, but Ramsdale was called upon with 13 minutes remaining to push wide a low effort by Diaz.
Jota headed against the bar from Alexander-Arnold’s resulting corner and yet his next delivery produced the breakthrough.
Odegaard fouled Gravenberch close to the byline and Alexander-Arnold’s fine inswinging cross was headed beyond a diving Ramsdale by the unfortunate Kiwior.
Arsenal pushed for a late leveller but Liverpool’s place in round four was confirmed when Diaz smashed home after a slick counter-attack in the fifth minute of added-time.
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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