City, Liverpool and Chelsea score in their debut in the FA Cup

There were no big surprises in the FA Cup third round matches that were played this Saturday. Liverpool eliminated Accrington at Anfield (4-0), with goals from Jota, Arnold, Dann and Chiesa, and Chelsea defeated Morecambe in London (5-0), with a double from João Félix. For its part, Manchester City beat Salford (8-0) with goals from Doku (2), Mubamba, Grealish, O’reilly and McAtee (3).

Between Liverpool, leader of the Premier League, and Accrington Stanley, nineteenth in League Two (Fourth Division), there are 86 positions in the English football pyramid. While for the humble the visit to Anfield was a party, for Arne Slot it was the perfect opportunity to rotate several of his most important pieces and to make his debut for Rio Ngumoha, at 16 years old, the youngest to do so in history of the reds in the competition.

João Félix scored a double

Jota completed a counterattack to make it 1-0 into an empty goal, after an assist from Darwin Núñez, and, just before the break, Alexander-Arnold sealed the match with a great shot from outside the area that went straight into the top corner.

With the advantage of two goals, the truth is that Accrington deserved to score, at least, the one of honour. They had a shot against the crossbar and a couple of dangerous shots, which fortunately for Caoimhin Kelleher, who returned five games later, did not end up inside.

In the final minutes, Jayden Danns, 18, confirmed his love affair with the competition, scoring his third goal in the ‘Reds’ shirt after a rebound from Federico Chiesa. The youth player has scored three goals in his short career with Liverpool and they have all come in the FA Cup.

To round off the victory, Chiesa, who has barely played for Liverpool due to his physical problems, took a good shot from the edge of the area to make the final score 4-0. It is the Italian’s first goal since he arrived from Juventus Turin last summer.

For its part, Chelsea, with many stars such as Pedro Neto, Romeo Lavia, Joao Félix and Christopher Nkunku, in addition to the Spanish Marc Guiu, who has six goals this campaign, all of them in the Conference League, took the match against a rival which is 87 positions behind him in the English football pyramid. The modest Morecambe, however, lasted almost forty minutes with a clean sheet thanks to the good performance of their goalkeeper, Harry Burgoyne, who saved a penalty from Nkunku and had a good hand to frustrate Enzo Maresca’s forwards.

His luck lasted until Tosin Adarabioyo tried a shot from the edge of the area five minutes before half-time, it touched Callum Jones and it was scored. He completely changed the trajectory, entered next to a stick and sank the ‘Shrimps’, known as this because of the shrimp on their shield.

In the second half, Nkunku, taking advantage of a rebound, Tosin, with a shot that this time went directly in, and Joao Félix, with a double, sealed the presence of Maresca’s team in the next round. Chelsea will find out their rival this Sunday in the draw that will be held at the end of Arsenal-Manchester United.

Manchester City thrashed Salford City, the team in the hands of Manchester United’s ‘Class of 92’: Beckham, Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil and Gary Neville

After the ‘reds’ and ‘blues’, Manchester City thrashed Salford City, the team in the hands of the ‘Class of 92’ -David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil and Gary Neville. Pep Guardiola’s team had one of its calmest games of the season against the weak Salford team, which is fighting for promotion to League One (English Third Division) and had little hope of getting anything out of the Etihad Stadium.

City, more than superior, took the lead after seven minutes, when Jeremy Doku defined an inside pass from Jack Grealish, and did not take their foot off the accelerator throughout the match, with great prominence from the youth players. Divin Mubama, 20, finished off a killer pass from Matheus Nunes to make it 2-0, and Nico O’Reilly, 19, made it 3-0 before the break.

After the restart, Grealish, from the penalty spot, scored his first goal for City since 2023 and James McAtee, with a hat trick, and Doku, also from the penalty spot, completed a rout before the eyes of Giggs, who was present. on the bench, as assistant coach, and Scholes and Butt, in the stands of the Etihad. The ‘skyblues’, who have won three in a row for the first time since October, will find out their rival in the next round of the competition this Sunday when the draw is made after Arsenal-Manchester United.