Liverpool have booked themselves a spot in another domestic cup final after they beat Manchester City 3-2 at Wembley on Saturday. Three first-half goals proved to be enough for the Reds as they held on, despite City clawing two back in the second-half.
Ibrahima Konate headed Liverpool in front in the early stages and a Sadio Mane double left Pep Guardiola's side with too much to do after the break. The result comes less than a week after the two sides played out a 2-2 draw at the Etihad in the Premier League.
Liverpool will now face either Crystal Palace or Chelsea in the final showpiece at Wembley next month, and here's what the national media made of Saturday's game.
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'Liverpool's pursuit of the Quadruple remains intact'
Paul Joyce - The Times : "Over the course of his Manchester City career, John Stones will have played the back-pass hundreds of times and not even given a second’s thought on what was to follow.
"Yet, on this occasion, it was not Ederson, but understudy goalkeeper Zach Steffen who found the ball at his feet with an opponent bearing down on him.
"Steffen took one touch, an open invitation to the indefatigable Sadio Mané to creep closer. Nervous indecision followed, then another touch and, suddenly, the Liverpool striker had pounced, snaking out his right boot to tackle the American practically on the goalline and gleefully turn the ball into a gaping net.
"It was a moment which neatly encapsulated this FA Cup semi-final, too, with Liverpool’s sheer desire ensuring their pursuit of the Quadruple remains intact as they reached the final for the 15th time and City responsible for creating too many of their own problems."
'The fear never enveloped Liverpool'
Sam Wallace - The Telegraph : "This was the FA Cup semi-final meeting of 2022’s great powers of English football and yet it only felt like the Cup tie it once promised to be in the last few frenetic minutes of time added on, when at last Pep Guardiola’s players considered themselves back in it.
"Before that was a strange afternoon that did not produce the great collision of last Sunday’s Premier League title race deadlock but instead saw an under-strength Manchester City demolished in the first half, only to unexpectedly rebuild some of the house in the second. They scored twice after the break, the second in the 91st minute, from Bernardo Silva and then finally made it a Cup tie only in the remnants of time added on at the end. Although it would be a push to say that the fear ever enveloped Liverpool.
"They earned their FA Cup final place, and the possibility of a domestic Cup double – perhaps a Treble, or quadruple - with a thrilling first half dominated by the goalscorer Sadio Mane and the maestro, Thiago Alcantara. Also, when the game was still in the balance and the difference between the two teams just Ibrahim Konate’s ninth-minute goal, a desperate error from the goalkeeper Zack Steffen gifted Liverpool their second and made this a very City arduous comeback indeed."
'Liverpool’s dominance of the first period was total'
David Hytner, The Guardian : "Zack Steffen wished he could be anywhere but here and Liverpool had a vice-like grip on this FA Cup semi-final that it was difficult to see them relinquishing. Poor Steffen. Pep Guardiola had wanted to show his faith in the domestic cup goalkeeper but it all went wrong for the USA No 1 and Manchester City in the 17th minute.
"Addressing a routine back-pass and under the usual orders to play out, Ederson-style, from the back, Steffen took a heavy first touch and, after some hesitation, an even heavier second one. Sadio Mane flew in to tackle the ball in for 2-0, Ibrahima Konate having scored the first, and Liverpool were on their way to a final against Chelsea or Crystal Palace and, they hope, the second element of an unprecedented quadruple.
"Liverpool’s dominance of the first period was total – Jurgen Klopp felt it was one of the best halves his team had played – and it would get worse for Steffen when he conceded softly at his near post from Mane for 3-0. He was excellent through the middle and so was Luis Diaz on the left wing, the January signing tormenting City with his Velcro touch, quick feet and wonderful balance. Thiago Alcântara pulled the strings from further back."
'Now Liverpool's task is clear'
Paul Gorst, Liverpool Echo : "If this is a win that is to ultimately mean anything in Liverpool's grand plan for glory, then they must now ensure it is their name on the FA Cup on May 14. There is no other option from here on in. This was a statement victory over Manchester City that will only embolden those who are firm in their belief that Jurgen Klopp's men can in fact sweep the board between now and the end of May.
"Another final beckons and they can sit back with their feet up on Easter Sunday as Chelsea meet Crystal Palace for the right to face them here again at Wembley in a month. Now, the task is clear - deliver a first FA Cup since 2006.
"But for now, even if the quadruple quest and its unrelenting run-in means it can only be a fleeting sensation, Jurgen Klopp can toast to another memorable day out and a performance over City that could yet be hugely psychological in the coming weeks. With nothing to separate these two in the Premier League skirmishes at the Etihad or Anfield this season, it took a dominant display at the national stadium for Liverpool to secure their first win against their now fierce enemy since November 2019.
"How it was richly deserved too; the right team is heading to the final and there can surely be no qualms about that from Pep Guardiola."
