Erling Haaland’s 18-minute hat-trick helped Manchester City beat Liverpool 4-0 on Saturday and reach the FA Cup semi-finals for a record eighth straight season.
Mohamed Salah’s missed penalty puts Liverpool in further trouble, but meltdown at Etihad Stadium will intensify pressure on manager alne slot.
Haaland converted a penalty in the 39th minute, headed in a cross from Antoine Semenyo in first-half stoppage time and smashed his finish over the crossbar in the 57th minute to complete his first hat-trick for City this season and his 12th since joining the club in 2022.
Semenyo scored City’s extra goal in the 50th minute, City’s first game since. won the English League Cup Two weeks ago, they defeated Arsenal in the final at Wembley Stadium. City will be back on the road for the FA Cup semi-finals later this month.
“This club has to win trophies,” Haaland said. After the game, Haaland, who deputized in the dugout while Pep Guardiola was suspended on the touchline and was described as a “machine” by City assistant coach Pep Lijnders, said:
Salah, who announced During his recent international break, he was then due to leave Liverpool 9 seasons full of trophieswas starting to do his thing A long farewell to the Reds However, he was unable to mark the goal. Of the many chances he thwarted, the best one came from a penalty, which City goalkeeper James Trafford converted in the 64th minute.
This was City’s 18th straight home win in the FA Cup since 2017. Pep Guardiola’s side share the record with Clapham Rovers for reaching seven consecutive FA Cup finals, and now hold that record for good.
Many Liverpool fans were seen leaving the stadium after City’s fourth goal.
“We didn’t have enough fighting spirit or mentality,” said Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai. “None of us tried to be as honest as we could.
“These are difficult times, but we must come together.”
Arsenal and Chelsea will also meet in the quarter-finals
Later on Saturday, Chelsea face third-tier Port Vale before Arsenal take on second-tier Southampton.
The draw for the semi-finals will take place on Sunday, when West Ham host Leeds in their final game to advance to the last eight.
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
