Liverpool regained its identity and, after two consecutive defeats in the Premier League, achieved the first win of 2023 in the 1/32 final tiebreaker of the FA Cup. Their victim was Julen Lopetegui’s Wolverhampton, who managed to keep the tie in the air in their 2-2 draw at Anfield but now they were knocked out after failing to respond to Harvey Elliott’s excellent goal at the Molineux Stadium. All this with Pablo Sarabia, whose signing for the ‘wolves’ was announced before the game, in the stands.
After Saturday’s disaster at Brighton (3-0), Jürgen Klopp asked his team for a ‘reset’, to return to compactness as a base to recover the essence of their football. And, despite the fact that only Konaté, Thiago Alcantara and the recently signed Gakpo repeated in the starting eleven, his unusual players responded perfectly.
Rotation with both teams
Liverpool cooled down Wolves’ impulsive departures, also with a lot of rotation, applying themselves to pressure, joining lines and moving the ball to create attacking danger.
Before the first quarter of an hour, the ‘reds’ scored on their first arrival. Elliott started from the midline and, seeing no one in his way and José Sá in front, launched a left-footed shot from outside the area that missed the Portuguese goalkeeper.
The Wolves had more trouble making plays in the middle zone due to the pressure their opponent was putting on them and the game was closer to 0-2. Indeed, Fabio Carvalho scored after half an hour of play but his goal was disallowed for offside.
Wolvs reaction after the break
Lopetegui brought on Nelson Semedo and Matheus Nunes at half-time, linking them to Liverpool for next season. Wolves continued without creating chances, while Naby Keïta was the only one for the ‘reds’ in this second half.
With Daniel Podence and Matheus Cunha, who continued to play alongside Adama Traoré and Raúl Jiménez, Lopetegui provided his team with more offensive power that, pushed by their fans, pressed for the goal that never came due to shortage. of ‘punch’ in the last meters.
Now Liverpool must visit Brighton in the 1/16 final with a view to revenge for the league drop and Wolves, who were also eliminated from the League Cup last week against Nottingham on penalties, will focus on confirming their stay in the Premier after emerging from the relegation place on Saturday with their victory over Leicester.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
