Liverpool survive early scare to cruise to FA Cup win over Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury Town had their moment, a lead at Anfield that lasted all of seven minutes, but an inexperienced Liverpool team found a mature response.

Jürgen Klopp’s side ultimately thwarted any fleeting hopes Steve Cotterill had of an upset as young Kaide Gordon and the not-so-young Fabinho plus Roberto Firmino eased the Premier League hosts into round four.

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Klopp was free to lead Liverpool again having been in isolation with Covid since before the Premier League draw at Chelsea. The Liverpool manager rejoined the group at their hotel on the morning of the game and, with positive tests continuing to affect the squad, along with injuries and the Africa Cup of Nations, he was required to improvise with his team selection.

Four teenagers – the full debutant Max Woltman, Kaide Gordon, Conor Bradley and Tyler Morton – started in a side that included the experience of Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson and Fabinho. That insurance policy was seriously examined in the first half by Shrewsbury’s disciplined and supremely well-organised gameplan.

Liverpool unsurprisingly dominated possession against the League One side but toiled to find a way through a five-man visiting rearguard protected by a compact three-man midfield. Gordon forced the Shrewsbury goalkeeper Marko Marosi into a low save from the edge of the area and Van Dijk headed over from a Robertson free-kick. Otherwise, it was a laboured performance and a flat tie until Cotterill’s side stunned Anfield by taking the lead from their first attempt on Caoimhin Kelleher’s goal.

Nathanael Ogbeta, Shrewsbury’s left wing-back, served notice of the threat he posed a minute before the breakthrough when skirting around Bradley and sweeping an inviting cross through the Liverpool area. No teammate was on hand to capitalise on that occasion. Seconds later, having controlled a cross-field ball from Ethan Ebanks-Landell expertly on his chest, Ogbeta again attacked Bradley before curling another delightful cross behind Ibrahima Konaté. This time Daniel Udoh was alert to the wing-back’s intentions and, arriving unmarked in the six-yard box, steered the ball beyond Kelleher to the wild delight of a 6,000-strong away section.

Klopp looked stunned at the ease with which Shrewsbury sliced through his team. They responded sharply, however, and quickly drew level with a goal made in their academy. Morton and Elijah Dixon-Bonner combined to release Bradley in space on the right. The Northern Ireland international picked out Gordon inside a crowded penalty area and the gifted forward’s quick feet enabled him to open up space for a cool finish beyond Marosi. At 17 years and 96 days, Gordon overtook Michael Owen to become the second youngest goalscorer in Liverpool’s history behind Ben Woodburn.

Daniel Podence bagged two and Nélson Semedo was also on the scoresheet as Wolves breezed into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 3-0 win over Sheffield United at Molineux.

Wolves were given a couple of reprieves following some uncharacteristically disjointed defending early on but Podence opened the scoring inside the first quarter of an hour and, from there, the hosts hardly looked back. They had to wait until the 72nd minute for Semedo to double their lead before Podence grabbed his second soon after, the forward's first goals since scoring in the Carabao Cup defeat against Tottenham on 22 September.

Billy Sharp thought he had equalised before half-time but the goal was chalked off for a high foot as the Blades endured an unhappy return to the ground where their relegation from the Premier League last season was confirmed.

Nathan Jones was happy to see his Luton side shake off their ring rust as they cruised past Harrogate 4-0 to move into the fourth round of the FA Cup. The Hatters went into the game having not played for 29 days due to outbreaks of Covid but, despite their lack of action, they eased home thanks to goals from Elijah Adebayo, Cameron Jerome, Kal Naismith and Luke Berry.

Jones said: "We haven't played any football in a month, we've given them a big week this week in terms of training and in numbers as we've got to get up to speed, so it was a gamble … We've managed to win the game 4-0, so it's not a bad world is it?"

Mark Harris fired a late extra-time winner as Cardiff beat Preston 2-1 in the Welsh capital. Harris's first goal in the competition came with the third-round tie just four minutes from a penalty shootout.

Isaak Davies, another of the Bluebirds' young guns, had earlier scored his first senior goal before Daniel Johnson's penalty put Preston back on terms. Davies' strike after 42 minutes was a particularly sweet moment for the Wales Under-21 international. Cardiff's manager, Steve Morison, had described Davies as being more "a hindrance than a help" after sending him on as a substitute at Bournemouth only to replace him within 30 minutes.

Tom Ince's first-half goal and a late Tyrese Campbell strike earned Stoke a 2-0 win over Leyton Orient. Ince netted three minutes from half-time and then provided the pass for substitute Campbell to settle the contest in the 89th minute. PA Media

The hosts overturned the deficit to lead at half-time through a Fabinho penalty. Given how well their team had defended for 44 minutes, it was a galling way for Shrewsbury to concede. Ebanks-Landell had Van Dijk on his back as the pair challenged for Robertson’s free-kick inside the area but no convincing reason to meet the ball with a raised arm. David Coote immediately pointed to the spot and Fabinho sent Marosi the wrong way from it.

Shrewsbury maintained their shape and strategy throughout the second half but a lack of composure in front of goal cost them several opportunities to capitalise on the counterattack. The clearest threat arrived consistently from Liverpool. Marosi denied Dixon-Bonner at close range moments after the restart but was beaten for a third time by a cheeky finish from the substitute Roberto Firmino.

Bradley claimed his second assist of the contest when he hooked the ball back from the byline for Konaté. The defender’s attempted shot was deflected on to Firmino via a Shrewsbury boot and, facing away from goal, the Brazilian back-heeled past the exposed Shrewsbury keeper.

Fabinho claimed his second of the game, and Liverpool’s fourth, with an emphatic finish into the roof of the net from Kostas Tsimikas’s injury-time free-kick.