Man Utd 4 Liverpool 3: Red Devils’ forgotten man Amad Diallo sends Ten Hag’s side to Wembley with last gasp winner
AMAD DIALLO’S stunning winner in the final seconds of extra-time ended Jurgen Klopp’s hopes of a farewell quadruple in a classic FA Cup quarter-final.
The young Ivory Coast forward netted after an Alejandro Garnacho breakaway as Erik ten Hag’s side twice came from behind to defeat their bitter rivals and book a semi-final at Wembley against Coventry.
Diallo was sent off for taking off his shirt, having already been booked, but even that could not take too much gloss off the finest moment of the 21-year-old’s young life.
Twice, United had looked dead and buried but a late equaliser from Antony forced half-time, then Marcus Rashford cancelled out a Harvey Elliott strike in the extra half-hour before Diallo netted only his United goal since a move from Atalanta in 2021.
This was a wildly fluctuating quarter-final – United making a powerful start and leading through Scott McTominay, then Liverpool striking twice late in the first half through Alexis Mac Aliister and Mo Salah.
Liverpool dominated the second half but lacked ruthlessness, before Antony turned and fired an equaliser, then Rashford missed a sitter of a chance to finish it inside 90 minutes.
This was a breathless ending to an epic weekend of last-eight action, packed with ridiculous drama, amid an extraordinary atmosphere at Old Trafford.
This is always the fiercest rivalry in English football and the presence of 9,000 visiting fans cranked up the volume significantly.
It was a ferocious start from United and their supporters, operating at a din rarely heard here in recent years.
Rashford had a shot pushed away by a fully-stretched Kelleher as United attacked in waves.
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Every Liverpool error was celebrated like a goal and, although Salah had sent an angled volley wide, United were worthy of their early lead.
A quickly-taken free-kick from Bruno Fernandes had released Rashford and left Liverpool short-handed at the back.
Then Alejandro Garnacho’s shot was pushed out by Kelleher but McTominay snapped up the rebound to send Old Trafford into rapture.
Robertson spooned over a good chance but United were still in the ascendancy.
Kobbie Mainoo beat three Liverpool defenders in a blur of feet and fed Rashford, who cut back for McTominay but the midfielder’s shot was blocked by Virgil Van Dijk.
But Liverpool often start poorly, often fall behind and rarely stay behind for long.
A late first-half rally from Klopp’s men turned the tie on its head.
First, Wataru Endo fired home from a Salah centre only for the Egyptian to be flagged offside.
United’s fans gloated when VAR upheld this narrowest of calls but they were soon left dumbfounded by a capitulation which turned a lead into a deficit inside three minutes.
First, Jarrell Quansah was allowed to charge forward unchallenged and found Darwin Nunez who laid off for Mac Allister to score with a shot which took a major deflection off the boot of Mainoo.
Then, in first-half injury-time, it got worse for Ten Hag as United suffered a mugging of their own making.
Fernandes collected a pass from Aaron Wan-Bissaka on the edge of his own area but fell under a light challenge from Joe Gomez.
United’s ‘captain’ stayed down, the full-back stopped and appealed for a foul while Liverpool were getting on with it and scoring.
Nunez was freed on the left and his shot was pushed out by a flying Onana but fell for Salah, who took a touch before he fired in.
It was a shocking end to a promising half from United and nothing that Ten Hag said at half-time seemed to make the blindest bit of difference because Liverpool started the second period like the clappers.
Nunez almost beat Onana from the tightest of angles at his near post, then the Uruguayan clipped one wide of the near post from a Salah pass.
As the rain hosed down and the Scousers crowed, United looked as if they were drowning.
Onana beat out a Nunez effort and Salah forced a diving save from the United keeper.
Ten Hag, out of desperation, sent for Antony, who soon screwed a shot wide.
There had been precious little sign of a United equaliser before it arrived in the 87th minute.
Garnacho was blocked in the area and the ball fell for Antony to shrug off Endo, swivel and shoot low into the far corner.
It was only the Brazilian’s second goal in 30 appearances this season and the first had come against Newport County.
Almost immediately, Harvey Elliott shot against the inside of the post before United scrambled clear.
Then, in the final action of injury-time, Christian Eriksen’s chipped pass sent Rashford clean through – and onside – but the England man somehow shot wide of the far post.
It was a staggering miss, further proof that Rashford simply isn’t an elite forward.
After Ten Hag had gone for broke with his substitutions, United’s team was now extremely unbalanced – with three defenders, Fernandes covering at left-back and Eriksen as the deepest midfielder.
Still, Antony shot narrowly over and Victor Lindelof hammered one into the side-netting as the hosts found a second wind.
But just before the extra-time change of ends, Conor Bradley fed Elliott whose shot was deflected off Eriksen past Onana.
United rallied again – Maguire shot straight at Kelleher, then, after a Nunez pass was intercepted, McTominay advanced and slipped a pass to Rashford who kept his cool this time and slotted past the Liverpool keeper.
Then United launched a stunning late counter-attack, a two-on-one with Garnacho feeding Diallo, who rolled his shot past Kelleher, sparking bedlam at the Theatre of Dreams.
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