Liverpool, Chelsea Cruise Into FA Cup 4th Round, Brentford Stung By Plymouth

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With a 5-0 win over Morecambe, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s stunning strike clinched a place in the FA Cup fourth round for Liverpool after Accrington Stanley’s 4-0 victory.

Brentford were the only Premier League side to fall to lower league opposition as Plymouth, who sit bottom of the Championship, stunned the Bees 1-0 thanks to Morgan Whittaker’s late winner.

Arne Slot made eight changes for Liverpool, but there was never any hint of a commotion at Anfield.

In contrast to Virgil van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold was appointed captain and set the tone for his leadership after being criticized for his performance in last weekend’s 2-2 draw against Manchester United.

A trip to Anfield would be Accrington’s “Champions League final,” according to Slot’s warning to the Premier League leaders.

Stanley struggled for nearly half an hour after being a mammoth 86 league positions in the 92-team English league system.

Diogo Jota had Darwin Nunez’s low cross to tap in from, opening the floodgates, leaving him with a straightforward task.

On January 11, 2025, Liverpool and Accrington Stanley’s English defender #05 Farrend Rawson (L) and Accrington Stanley’s English defender #04 Zach Awe (R) square off against Liverpool’s Uruguayan striker #09 Darwin Nunez in the third-round football match at Anfield in Liverpool, north-west England. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP)

Alexander-Arnold then took the lead with a lavish strike into the top corner from outside the box.

In the third 14 minutes, Jayden Danns scored the most of his only other appearance of the season.

Federico Chiesa’s Liverpool career has so far been a failure due to injury issues.

However, the Italian made the most of some exceptional game time to score his first goal for the club with a long-range strike off the far post.

Although it’s a good first step, Slot on Chiesa’s second half cameo off the bench said, “We have to take into account that we’re talking about League Two level, as much as I liked the way Accrington Stanley played.”

“He’s back on the pitch, that’s good.” He was a threat, but let’s not get carried away”.

With a rare opportunity to serve as Cole Palmer’s deputy, Joao Felix won the hearts of Chelsea.

Christopher Nkunku made up for his 13th goal of the season by scoring the pair of goals that both Tosin Adarabioyo and Portuguese international Tosin Adarabioyo both scored.

Only Liverpool and Brentford have won at home in the Premier League this season, and Plymouth hasn’t won away from home all campaign.

However, despite the odds, Argyle, who fired former England captain Wayne Rooney 12 days earlier, persevered and fired a sucker punch into Thomas Frank’s side with Whittaker’s strike nine minutes in.

Nottingham Forest, a top-flight team, defeated Luton 2-0 to end their excellent season.

Georginio Rutter scored two goals to earn a 4-0 victory over Brighton at Norwich.

This week, Bournemouth burst back from 1-0 down to defeat West Brom 5-1 thanks to the injuries to Evanilson and Enes Unal.

In a 6-2 thriller at the King Power, Leicester improved by hitting QPR for six.

Former Utd greats face Man City in front.

Salford City, a team of former Manchester United greats, will next face fourth-tier opposition from Manchester City later.

Since their involvement with Salford first started in 2014, investments from David Beckham, Gary and Phil Neville, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, and Nicky Butt have helped them rise through the non-league ranks.

With the 2-1 victory over Lincoln from NFL legend Tom Brady’s Birmingham, another famous co-owner in English football is already in the fourth round.

With early goals from Rayan At-Nouri and Rodrigo Gomes sealing a 2-1 victory for Wolves under new manager Vitor Pereira, the team continued their strong start.