Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick as Manchester City beat Liverpool 4-0 in an extraordinary FA Cup quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium.
Haaland’s penalty late in the first half opened the floodgates, with Haaland adding one before half-time and Antoine Semenyo adding a third soon after. Haaland’s hat-trick goal was scored just before the hour mark as the reigning Premier League champions were crushed.
Mohamed Salah was making his first appearance since announcing he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season, but the pressure will increase on him as James Trafford also saw a penalty saved on fourth down to cap a disastrous afternoon for Arne Slott’s side.
Mohamed Salah reacts after missing penalty against Man City
how liverpool collapsed
It was Virgil van Dijk’s clumsy foul on Nico O’Reilly inside the penalty area that gave Haaland the chance to put City ahead, but there was little Liverpool could do to prevent the Norwegian from scoring his second goal – a superb goal in first-half stoppage time.
Rayan Cherki’s trick led to Semenyo being sent off and Haaland headed beyond Giorgi Mamadashvili. Things got even worse for Liverpool after Cherki started having fun, introducing Semenyo behind Van Dijk to chip Mamadashvili early in the second half.
Pep Guardiola, who was suspended from playing on the touchline but watched from the stands, led City to the last four of the FA Cup for the eighth consecutive season. They have just beaten Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final and are aiming for a double domestic cup title.
This was Liverpool’s best chance of winning silver this season, but they still have a Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain and a place in next year’s competition to secure. From this evidence, their prospects don’t look good.
Best player: Erling Haaland
Haaland scores hat-trick as Man City beat Liverpool 4-0
“I’ve worked with a lot of good strikers,” Pep Lijnders said in a subsequent press conference. But it was clear from the tone of the City assistant’s voice that he had never come across a player like the amazing Haaland.
“The second goal was insane,” Lijnders enthused. “Because the way he attacks, the way he flies, the way he drives the ball into the corner, I love this old-school striker crossing, waiting, committing, chipping. I love that.” This is Haaland back to his best.
There were times this year when the striker’s form declined, but he seems to have benefited from a relative break during the international match. As Norway qualified, he was spared from playing in one of his country’s two friendlies.
“It’s crazy what we’re asking. I’m not saying he’s carrying Norway on his back, but we all know how important a player he is for Norway, where there are so many other good players. What I’m saying is that he feels that responsibility,” Lijnders said.
“He feels responsible for pressing, playing, coming to sets, running behind, being in the box and keeping the ball when the opposition is defending man-to-man. There are a lot of things that we ask of him every three days and he does that.
“Obviously over a long, long season, not everything goes as planned, but it shows again his character and mentality to come back in this form. That’s great. Not only is he great, he’s a machine to work with.”
Slot: Lack of fighting spirit
Liverpool head coach Arne Slott said in a press conference:
“I don’t think you need to ask me about the result, because that says it all. It’s an incredible disappointment. It’s already a disappointment to lose. To lose 4-0 in the FA Cup quarter-final against a team that Liverpool have played and played against so many times is obviously a huge disappointment.”
“The 20 minutes we conceded four goals were not up to our standards.
“No one will probably remember it, but there was a lot of good from the team in the first 35 minutes. After that, it would be good if we could score once in a while from the chances we created.”
“Again, we played teams that were a mile above our xG, and that happens all the time, and we fall short of it every time.
“But if we want to have a chance of winning against PSG, we have to be better in both parts. We need to score when we create chances and we can’t afford to lose so easily with four goals.”
He added: “There was a clear lack of fighting spirit in the first 10 minutes after half-time, but after that it was a game where both teams accepted the result, 4-0.”
“But in those 10 to 15 minutes, I missed not only the fighting spirit, but the drive to win duels, to be there first and to make it difficult for passes and crosses and finishes.
“That’s something we definitely have to improve on Wednesday.”
Analysis: Worst loss in slots history
At first glance, the slot may offer some reassurance in its underlying statistics. Ownership was shared. Both teams had 11 attempts on goal. In fact, Liverpool had 36 touches inside the opponent’s penalty area compared to 21 for Manchester City. Does that mean they are evenly matched?
Not completely. This makes it clear that City boast the best unstoppable striker on the planet, but it also shows what is eroding Liverpool’s season. They are supposed to be a top team, but they are bad in both boxes. Details still cost money.
Van Dijk didn’t have to kick O’Reilly in the box, giving City the chance to take the lead. Salah also squandered the first clear chance of the match, missing a penalty placed in the same spot as Haaland had scored in the first half.
These were the slot winners as Alisson Becker was injured again. Florian Wirtz, their record signing, graced too many of these big matches rather than dominating them. Liverpool are missing something at full-back and their midfield is unbalanced.
There were times when the forwards would push up high and the defense would drop, creating space, and this Liverpool side didn’t have the leg strength to deal with it. Dominik Szoboszlai’s solo pursuit of shadows is the centerpiece of the campaign.
Liverpool are struggling, but no team other than Manchester City has beaten them more than this strange goal this season. This was somehow different, but still coming. The kind of excuses that supporters have had to hear all year will no longer be covered.
