FA Cup: On a day of FA Cup surprises, Liverpool made to fight for Wolves draw
Liverpool made a shaky start to their FA Cup defence in a 2-2 draw against an under-strength Wolves side who were denied a late winner by VAR.
Darwin NunezDarwin Nunez demonstrated that he is a finisher with an exquisite cushioned volley from a gorgeous Trent Alexander-Arnold cross before Mohamed Salah passed Kenny Dalglish for the most goals scored by a player wearing a red shirt to move up the club's all-time list.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A draw at Anfield means this <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EmiratesFACup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EmiratesFACup</a> tie goes to a replay.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LIVWOL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LIVWOL</a> <a href="https://t.co/O3v2abJ0bU">pic.twitter.com/O3v2abJ0bU</a></p>— Liverpool FC (@LFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/LFC/status/1611843707157766144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
However, Liverpool's defence was disorganised. After Alisson Becker's error gave Goncalo Guedes the lead in the second half, substitute Hwang Hee-Chan secured a replay four minutes after coming on. Liverpool had been defeated on Monday following a wild performance against Brentford.
Wolves defender Toti was denied a goal nine minutes from time by an offside flag, which was confirmed by a murky VAR decision, Jurgen Klopp was left to contemplate the riddles of yet another subpar performance as the guests went home buoyed ahead of a huge week.
Even £38 million signing Cody Gakpo's promising debut could not conceal the flaws in a performance that veered from horrible to excellent to poor again.
Jurgen Klopp made nine substitutions and started 19-year-old right-back Dexter Lembikisa against Wolves, a squad who will play in a Carabao Cup quarterfinal on Wednesday before playing West Ham in the Premier League as they continue their survival fight.
However, after surviving a purposefully restrained opening from their hosts—Salah sent a free-kick over, and Gakpo had an early shot. Julen Lopetegui's team appeared to be the superior team, though, with Adama Traore's quick dashes forward posing challenges.
Over half of Liverpool's games this season have seen them let in the opening goal, and once again, they blatantly put themselves in harm's way.
Raul Jimenez of Mexico was brought to the ground by Thiago Alcantara's recovery tackle as he attempted to dribble out of defence, which appeared to confuse everyone.
No one was more bamboozled than Alisson, who was gazing at Alexander-Arnold but strangely passed right to Guedes, who could not miss an open goal. The Brazil goalkeeper seemed to be waiting for referee Andy Madley to make a judgement.
Alisson performed considerably better with a Guedes shot from 25 yards out, palming it to safety, before Liverpool produced a magnificent equaliser on the half's final play that their performance had scarcely justified.
Alexander-Arnold intercepted a cross-field pass from Nathan Collins intended for no one, moved forward, and crossed for Uruguayan international Nunez to score his first goal since returning from the World Cup.
The striker has received criticism for blowing numerous opportunities during that time, yet despite all of his seeming difficulties, he has scored ten goals in 23 games for Liverpool, which is virtually a goal every other game.
It was Alexander-Arnold's 250th appearance and 62nd assist.
When Toti headed Gakpo's cross into the air seven minutes after the half, Salah used his foot to score Liverpool's second brilliant goal.
The Egyptian national team player, who had initially been offside when Gakpo played the ball, benefitted from the contact and grabbed it as it fell before slipping it past Matija Sarkic with his next touch.
However, Liverpool were unable to exercise any control as Alisson denied Rayan Ait-Nouri in a one-on-one situation, and Hwang Hee-chan equalised in the 66th minute.
When Toti flicked home at the far post after a cross from Wolves' left was diverted his way, they thought they had secured a winner, but controversially it was ruled out for offside and there was no sufficient VAR camera angle available to overrule the decision. Therefore, Liverpool were able to escape with a draw and force a replay.