Juergen Klopp on Sunday saluted Liverpool’s fighting spirit as they kept fired-up Arsenal at bay to seal a 2-0 win in the FA Cup third round.
Klopp’s side had to survive a sustained Arsenal assault at the Emirates Stadium before two goals in the closing stages gave them a hard-fought success.
Arsenal’s Jakub Kiwior headed Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick into his own net in the 80th minute and Luis Diaz wrapped up the victory deep into stoppage-time.
Photo: Reuters
In the absence of the ill Virgil van Dijk, as well as Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo on international duty, Liverpool showed they have the character required to win silverware this season.
“In the end we came through. I’m really happy we could win this game. Arsenal could have won it without a doubt. We finished it off and it spoke for the character of the boys,” Klopp said. “I’m super proud. It was a super difficult draw. Maybe the most difficult we could have got.”
“It wasn’t an easy game to enjoy in the first half. We changed a bit at halftime,” he said. “We were really in the game in the second half. We scored the goals and fought for 95 minutes.”
With English Premier League leaders Liverpool chasing four trophies and facing a League Cup semi-final first leg against Fulham this week, Klopp was relieved to avoid a draining FA Cup replay.
Liverpool are two points ahead of second-placed Aston Villa and five above fourth-placed Arsenal as they chase a first title since 2019-2020.
By avoiding an Arsenal rematch, Liverpool will have a revitalizing break after the Fulham game until Jan. 21 when they go to AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League.
“We desperately wanted to avoid a draw. Now I don’t have to make any decisions which is good,” Klopp said. “Wednesday is the next game and then a few days off. We have to make steps if you want to be where we are. We will have a winter break now.”
Klopp saluted the influence of England’s Alexander-Arnold, who kept driving Liverpool forward in the second half.
“What a game he played by the way, in all the positions he played. You see his class on the ball,” the German said.
Arsenal have now won just one of their past six games in all competitions, losing three in a row to leave their once-promising season in limbo.
Mikel Arteta’s side are out of the FA Cup and League Cup, and are no longer in pole position in the Premier League.
Arteta said that they had only themselves to blame after squandering a host of chances to take the lead.
“The performance was there and the amount of chances, too. We just have to win the game, but we lost it and we are not capitalizing,” he said. “When you are better than the best team in Europe and you generate that amount of chances, I have not seen a team do it against them, but it is not enough. The reality is, it is not enough.”
Arteta said that he would not panic despite Arsenal’s untimely slump.
“When my team plays with this confidence what can I do? I am still behind them 100 percent,” he said. “It is what it is, and we have to continue to play the same way and be more efficient.”
In the other FA Cup third-round matches on Sunday, Manchester City mauled Huddersfield 5-0, Nottingham Forest were held to a 2-2 draw by Blackpool, Peterborough United lost 3-0 at home to Leeds United, Wrexham won 1-0 away at Shrewsbury Town, West Bromwich Albion thrashed Aldershot Town 4-1, West Ham United were held to a 1-1 draw by Bristol City and Luton Town drew 0-0 with Bolton Wanderers.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Manchester City have reached do-or-die territory in the UEFA Champions League earlier than expected ahead of what Pep Guardiola has described as a “final” against Club Brugge today. City have disproved the suggestion a new format to Europe’s top club competition would remove any jeopardy for the top clubs as Guardiola stares down the barrel of failing to make the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in his career. The English champions have endured a torrid season both in their English Premier League title defense and on the continent. A run of one win in 13 games, which included Champions League
Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday poured in 35 points as the Thunder grabbed a bounce-back 118-108 victory in Portland to push their NBA-best record to 37-8. The Thunder, surprised by the short-handed Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, fended off a late surge from the Trail Blazers to snap their four-game winning streak. Jalen Williams scored 24 points and Isaiah Joe added 16 off the bench. Center Isaiah Hartenstein, back after a five-game absence with a calf injury, added 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a big block. The Western Conference leaders were under pressure late as Portland, trailing by 15 heading
The Golden State Warriors on Wednesday withstood Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 52-point outburst to beat the Western Conference leading Thunder 116-109. Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points and Warriors superstar Stephen Curry scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half as Golden State erased a double-digit deficit and pulled away late for the victory. “We just stayed solid,” said Curry, who entered the contest mired in a shooting slump and had just four points on one basket in the first half. “Just all-around effort.” The Thunder, fueled by 31 first-half points from Gilgeous-Alexander, led by as many as 14 in the
Ousmane Dembele on Wednesday scored a hat-trick as Paris Saint-Germain romped to a 4-1 win at VfB Stuttgart and qualified for the UEFA Champions League knockout stages. PSG were at risk of elimination after a disappointing league stage, with three losses and a draw, but were utterly dominant against an outclassed Stuttgart side as they confirmed their place in the playoffs. With six minutes gone, Bradley Barcola headed PSG in front after Desire Doue stood a cross up at the back post following a corner. Stuttgart probed for an equalizer, but PSG hit on the counterattack, Dembele tapping a Barcola pass into an
RSS