BY OUR MAN AT ANFIELD
DOMINIK SZOBOSZLAI lived every footballer’s dream and nightmare in 90 chaotic minutes as Liverpool eventually blew away brave Barnsley to march into the FA Cup fourth round.
The Hungarian playmaker was the star of a bizarre Anfield show, smashing home a 30-yard “Thunder-bolt” before handing the League One minnows a route back into the game with a “kamikaze” backheel that left boss Arne Slot fuming.
For 84 minutes, a massive upset felt like it was brewing in the Merseyside air.
But just as the Tykes began to dream of a replay, Liverpool’s “Billion-Pound Bench” arrived to save the day.
It took just nine minutes for Szoboszlai to set the stadium alight, rifling a unstoppable drive into the top corner. When Jeremie Frimpong doubled the lead with a fierce strike on 36 minutes, the contest looked over. But the FA Cup always has a twist.
In a moment of “reckless arrogance” five minutes before the break, Szoboszlai tried a fancy backheel inside his own six-yard box. Instead of finding keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, he served the ball on a silver platter for Adam Phillips.
The former Reds trainee couldn’t believe his luck, tapping into an empty net to send the travelling Yorkshire fans into a frenzy.
Barnsley were “outstanding,” according to boss Conor Hourihane, and they were inches from an equalizer when Davis Keillor-Dunn rattled the post.
They even shouted for a penalty when Szoboszlai — involved in everything — appeared to trip Reyes Cleary.
But Slot had seen enough. He threw on the big guns, and the class finally told.
German sensation Florian Wirtz showed why he’s one of the world’s most wanted men, curling a beauty into the far corner six minutes from time to finally break Barnsley hearts.
Not content with just the goal, Wirtz then turned provider in stoppage time, crossing for fellow sub Hugo Ekitike to tap home a fourth that ruthlessly flattered the hosts.
Despite the 4-1 scoreline, Arne Slot wasn’t dancing in the dugout.
”It was tight for far too long,” the Dutchman admitted.
“At 2-0, giving a goal away like that makes it difficult. We needed that creative spark from the bench.”
Liverpool move on to face Brighton in the next round, but they’ll know they got away with one here.
As for Szoboszlai? He’s the only man in Anfield who managed to be the Man of the Match and the Villain of the Piece all in one night.
