Recapping Liverpool's mixed bag performance in the 4-1 win over Barnsley
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Liverpool moved past League One side Barnsley 4-1 in the third round of the FA Cup. Despite the final score, for the first 80 minutes of regular time, the Reds showed us who they have been all season: a disjointed and vulnerable mess.Barnsley have been struggling for form, especially defensively, this season—sound familiar?—and have managed just one result (a draw against Wigan) in their last four matches.
Unfortunately for the Tykes, Connell was forced to miss this matchup due to the red card he received against Wigan.Lineup Rotation is a good thingLiverpool’s starting XI featured Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo, and the promising 17-year old winger Rio Ngumoha, who displayed stellar ball skills throughout the match and flashed what Reds fans have been pining to see more of.With Liverpool being too far out to defend their English Premier League title, an early exit from the FA Cup would’ve been an embarrassment and potentially the end of the Arne Slot era. The attacking midfielder now has six goals across all competitions this season.Liverpool v Barnsley - Emirates FA Cup - Third Round - Anfield | Peter Byrne - PA Images/GettyImagesThe Tykes' offense caught the Reds napping in the 30th minute, leading to a Keillor-Dunn one-on-one matchup with Virgil van Dijk that quickly fizzled out when the veteran held up the offensive threat, albeit conceding a shot on target.Jeremie Frimpong made the score 2-0 Liverpool on an equally impressive goal—a scorcher from the right side of the box.What are you doing Szobo?Hope was gifted to Barnsley near the halfway mark when Adam Phillips -- a player who once played for the Liverpool Youth Academy -- netted an easy one after Szoboszlai got too cute with an attempted pass back to Liverpool goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Upon replay, Szoboszlai got a toe on the ball and didn’t commit enough for VAR review.Liverpool v Barnsley - Emirates FA Cup - Third Round - Anfield | Peter Byrne - PA Images/GettyImagesOver the course of the rest of the match, Szoboszlai made multiple attempts to make amends for his mental lapse that cost his team a goal earlier in the match, including several key passes that would’ve been recorded as assists—most notably an impressive pass to Wirtz in the 75th minute that sailed high. Wirtz got his footing not ten minutes later and scored on a nasty flick pass from Ekitike, sealing Liverpool’s place in the fourth round of the FA Cup.