Brighton knock Liverpool out of the FA Cup

Brighton & Hove Albion overcame a deficit to defeat Liverpool 2-1 and advance to the FA Cup fifth round, depriving the holders of their second victory in six games.

Within the first five minutes of an equally balanced first half, a sprawling Lewis Dunk cleared Mohamed Salah's attempt off the line. After solid work from Solly March down the flank, Trent Alexander-Arnold was in the right place at the right time to deny Evan Ferguson on the other end.

Harvey Elliot put Salah through one-on-one, but he unexpectedly side-footed wide. Salah made up for it minutes later when the roles were switched and he scored the game's first goal. Jason Steele attempted to block Elliot's shot from reaching the far corner, but was unsuccessful. That advantage, however, was short-lived as Tariq Lamptey attempted to score from distance but saw his attempt deflect off of Dunk and fool Alisson after less than ten minutes.

A couple of early second-half chances for the Seagulls prompted Jürgen Klopp into a triple change on the hour mark. Having just come on, James Milner produced a perfectly-measured ball to set Salah in behind, but Steele remained composed to put a stop to the attack. Armed with fresh impetus, the Reds pushed to retake the lead, but instead required Alisson’s quick reactions to remain level, as the Brazilian denied March from close range.

Brighton fans were left enraged when Alexis Mac Allister was knocked off the ball by Ibrahima Konaté when through on goal, and Fabinho narrowly escaped a red card for a reckless challenge on Ferguson. However, with time almost up, all was forgiven when a set-piece made its way to Mitoma, who displayed exquisite close control before firing in the winner. Roberto De Zerbi’s side marked their cup progression with their first-ever consecutive pair of wins over Liverpool, while the Reds exit the FA Cup at this stage for a fifth time in seven years.