Sports

FA Cup: Man United edge Liverpool out of FA Cup

Published

4 years ago

January 25, 2021

Bruno Fernandes’ superb free-kick sent troubled Liverpool crashing out of the FA Cup as Manchester United beat their bitter rivals 3-2 in the fourth round, while Tammy Abraham’s hat-trick eased the pressure on Chelsea manager Frank Lampard in a win over Luton on Sunday.

Fernandes struck with 12 minutes left at Old Trafford to cap a thrilling clash that left Liverpool searching for answers after another painful defeat.

Jurgen Klopp’s side took the lead through Mohamed Salah’s first-half goal, but Mason Greenwood equalised before the interval.

Marcus Rashford put United in front after the break and, although Salah equalised, Portugal midfielder Fernandes came off the bench to fire his free-kick past Alisson Becker.

After slumping to fourth in the Premier League following Thursday’s shock 1-0 defeat against Burnley — their first league loss at Anfield since 2017 — Liverpool have to lick their wounds again.

Liverpool, who trail leaders United by six points, have won only one of their last seven games in all competitions and that lone success came against Aston Villa’s youth team in the FA Cup third round.

Liverpool struck in the 18th minute when Roberto Firmino threaded a pass to Salah, who lifted his shot over Dean Henderson.

United levelled in the 26th minute when Rashford sent Greenwood clear for a low strike past Alisson Becker.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men netted again in the 48th minute as a mistake from Liverpool’s young defender Rhys Williams allowed Greenwood to race clear and score.

Firmino’s cross was converted by Salah for Liverpool’s 58th-minute equaliser, but Fernandes won it with his sublime set-piece after Fabinho fouled Edinson Cavani.

United will host West Ham in the fifth round as their momentum continues to build.

“You know when you go a goal down the reaction of everyone was really good. We played some really good stuff, good goals. We have to defend well against them and we managed to react well,” Solskjaer said.

Liverpool have never got past the fifth round in Klopp’s reign, but that will be the least of his concerns as he tries to spark a revival from his spluttering team.

“There was a lot of good things and some mistakes around the goals. If you want to win here you have to be absolutely top and we were not,” Klopp said.

Lampard has been under the spotlight, but there was some relief for the Blues boss as Abraham’s finishing helped seal a 3-1 victory against Luton.

The England striker struck twice in the opening 17 minutes, first firing into the far corner before heading home from close range for his 10th goal of the season.

However, it was not all plain sailing for Lampard’s men as goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga was at fault for another sloppy goal, while Timo Werner’s lack of confidence will not have been helped by missing a penalty.

Jordan Clark’s low shot crept past Kepa’s woeful attempted save to give Luton a lifeline and the world’s most expensive ‘keeper had to make a much more difficult stop to deny Harry Cornick an equaliser in the second half.

A brilliant team move finally killed the tie off 16 minutes from time as substitute Callum Hudson-Odoi crossed for Abraham to tap home from point-blank range.

Werner had a chance to score just his second goal in 16 games when he was tripped by Clark, but his dreadful spell continued as his tame penalty was saved by Simon Sluga.

With Chelsea now well off the pace in the Premier League and facing a tough last-16 tie against La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, the FA Cup may prove Lampard’s best chance of saving his job by winning a trophy.

A trip to Barnsley in the fifth round awaits early next month should the former England midfielder steady the ship in the league to remain in charge until then.

Leicester won 3-1 at second-tier Brentford to set up a home tie against Brighton.

Burnley beat Fulham 3-0 at Craven Cottage and play Bournemouth or Crawley in the last 16.

-AFP

Sports

Flying Eagles beat Egypt 2-1 in U-20 AFCON warm-up

Published

13 hours ago

April 23, 2025

Trends Admin

Flying Eagles beat Egypt 2-1 in U-20 AFCON warm-up

Nigeria’s U-20 national team, the Flying Eagles, defeated their Egyptian counterparts 2-1 in a friendly match on Tuesday in Cairo, ahead of the 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the tournament will take place in Egypt from April 27 to May 18.

Kparobo Arierhi gave Nigeria the lead in the 10th minute after receiving a fine pass from Bidemi Amole and coolly slotting it home.

Egypt equalised in the 65th minute through Ahmed Kaabaka, but Nigeria regained the lead in the 83rd minute when Precious Benjamin scored from the penalty spot.

The penalty came after Divine Oliseh was fouled in the box.

The win is a big boost for Nigeria, who arrived in Egypt on Sunday for the 17th U-20 AFCON.

Nigeria, the seven-time champions, is in Group B and will play its first match against Tunisia on Thursday. It will also face Morocco and Kenya in the group stage.

NAN reports that the top four teams from the tournament will qualify to represent Africa at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Chile slated for Sept. 27 to October 19. (NAN)

Sports

Osimhen to rake in N136bn from Man United

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2025

Trends Admin

Osimhen to rake in N136bn from Man United

Super Eagles’ ace striker, Victor Osimhen, will reportedly earn at least a staggering One Hundred Thirty-Six Billion , Two Hundred Thirty-Three Million and Six Hundred Sixty-Four Thousand Naira if he eventually switched to Manchester United in the summer, even as Al Wehdah striker Odion Ighalo has urged his former national teammate to explore a life-time opportunity to play in the English Premier League.

In the meantime, several Turkish outlets have claimed that Manchester United are close to finalising a deal for Osimhen, who remains a Galatasaray player until the end of the season.

The on-loan frontman has faced a hugely uncertain future over the last year due to how his fiery Napoli exit panned out; after clashing heads with Antonio Conte, he was stripped of his number and removed from the side’s Serie A squad list before the season began, leaving him little to no time to agree a deal with a suitor before the transfer deadline.

When a move to Al Ahli collapsed in the final stages, Osimhen signed for Galatasaray with no buy option included in the terms. As such, he now has only two months remaining in Turkey before he’ll have to return to Napoli and hold some pretty crucial talks over his next steps.

Osimhen has long been linked with an Old Trafford switch over the years, primarily because he poses as a direct solution to their flagrant goal-scoring woes.

The Nigerian international boasts a stunning 143 career goals in 257 appearances, including 29 goals – and a further six assists – in only 34 appearances this term.

Turkish journalist Aygun Ozipek claimed the 26-year-old has agreed a five-year deal with the Red Devils for a fee of £51 million, with the player said to have negotiated a salary worth £12.8m (about N27,246,732,800) per year.

Sports

U20 AFCON: Flying Eagles tackle Young Pharaohs in friendly

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2025

Trends Admin

Flying Eagles Players

U20 AFCON: Flying Eagles tackle Young Pharaohs in friendly

Nigeria’s U20 boys, Flying Eagles have arrived in the Egyptian capital city of Cairo as the seven-time African champions get set for 17th Africa U20 Cup of Nations finals starting in the North African country on Sunday.

A delegation of 24 players and nine officials led by Head Coach, Aliyu Zubairu touched down at the Cairo International Airport aboard Egypt Air flight on Sunday evening.

The team is lodged at Jewel Sports City and Aqua Resort, and commenced training session yesterday.

Meanwhile, the Flying Eagles will square up to host nation, the Young Pharaohs of Egypt this evening as part of their build-up to the Africa U20 Cup of Nations billed to take place 27th April – 18th May.