As it happened: Chelsea 2-0 LFC

FA Cup 5th Round
Tuesday 03 March 2020 - 7:45 pm
Stamford Bridge
Chelsea2
0Liverpool
Show Match Events
⚽️ Willian13'
Kovacic off, Mount on ↔️42'
Willian off, Jorginho on ↔️51'
61' Fabinho
⚽️ Barkley64'
70'↔️ Jones off, Milner on
70'↔️ Origi off, Firmino on
76' Milner
80'↔️ Lallana off, Salah on
Giroud off, James on ↔️90'
90' Mane
Hide Match Events

Liverpool travel to Chelsea for a 5th round game in the FA Cup, and with a host of changes to the starting line up.

It will be a blend of first team, squad and youth players at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea will enjoy home advantage for the game, and are in desperate need of a good result in this competition after appearing to stumble in 4th place in the Premier League.

The reds have 1 win, 1 draw and 1 defeat in their last 3 visits to this stadium.

The winner of tonight's game will head into the 6th round draw which will be performed tomorrow evening.

As it happened...

19:07 UK
Liverpool make seven changes

But Van Dijk, Fabinho, Andy Robertson and Mane retain their places.

Adrian, Williams, Van Dijk, Gomez, Robertson, Fabinho, Lallana, Jones, Minamino, Mane, Origi.

Subs: Lonergan, Milner, Firmino, Salah, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Matip, Chirivella.

19:14 UK
Chelsea team - Willian and Arrizabalaga back in

Frank Lampard's side certainly look more like a Premier League line up than Liverpool's. 

However, they make six changes, including bringing back Willian and Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Zouma, Alonso, Gilmour, Kovacic, Barkley, Willian, Pedro, Giroud.

19:43 UK

Virgil van Dijk leads Liverpool on to the pitch at Stamford Bridge where the pyrotechnics are in full effect.

19:46 UK
KICK OFF

Underway.

19:47 UK

2' Appears to be Mane on the right, Origi on the left, Minamino down the middle.

19:48 UK

2' Early pressure from the reds. 

Robertson fires in a cross but it's too close to the keeper's grasp and Kepa does just that.

19:49 UK

3' Good move from the reds who burst through the defence.  But when it falls to Mane by the penalty spot he drills it straight at Kepa.

Should have worked the keeper harder.

19:52 UK

7' And now a great chance for Chelsea.

Corner sent in, Azpilicueta gets the near post header and it squeezes narrowly wide.

19:55 UK

9' Origi collects the ball in space down that left wing, takes his man on and swings in a cross.

Mane claiming a push from Alonso but there wasn't a lot in it.  Mane just got his positioning wrong.

19:56 UK

11' Lovely threaded ball by Minamino but Sadio Mane seems unable to get it out his feet.

He's had some great opportunities already but it doesn't look like Sadio has fully awoken yet in this game.

19:59 UK
GOAL

13' Well after a brilliant save from Adrian, Liverpool just didn't clear.

Willian then tries a a shot from outside the area and Adrian bizarrely can't keep hold of that.

A brilliant save then a not so brilliant one.

1-0 to Chelsea.

20:03 UK
Close....

18' Adam Lallana conceded a free kick just outside the area and it's a good effort by Marcos Alonso - just high and wide of the goal.

20:07 UK
WOW

21' Liverpool have four shots from inside the penalty spot and zero of them go in.

It's like pinball inside the Chelsea penalty box.

20:13 UK

27' Neco Williams attempts a dramatic curling shot from just outside the area, but he's hit that wide of the goal.

Frenetic start to this game from both teams.  Surely more goals in this.

Liverpool need to rapidly improve their ruthlessness in front of goal.

20:17 UK

30' Mane with excellent trickery inside the area there, but his shot goes straight at Kepa.

From the rebound Neco Williams attempts a chance but it goes high and wide of the goal.

20:18 UK

33' Neco Williams with an important clearance there. Ball had taken a slight deflection off Virgil van Dijk.

20:28 UK
Chelsea sub

42' Mateo Kovacic heads off after seeming to twist his ankle.

Mason Mount is on to replace him.

20:31 UK

2 minutes injury time....

20:34 UK
HT: Chelsea 1-0 Liverpool

Liverpool have had chances - plenty of them.

But Willian's shot straight at Adrian, that the Liverpool keeper just couldn't keep hold of, is the difference in the scorelines.

Chelsea debutant Gilmour having a good game.  Mane, Minamino and Origi have all been poor up front.

The reds are going to need a big second half performance.

20:48 UK
SECOND HALF

Can Liverpool turn this one goal deficit around?

We are back underway.

20:51 UK

48' Origi travels too far across the Chelsea area with the ball and has it taken off him.

Was trying to work himself into a shooting position but just pushed the ball too far in front.

20:53 UK
Chelsea sub

51' Willian has taken a knock.  He goes off and on comes Jorginho.

That's two forced changes so far for the Chelsea boss.

21:01 UK

58' Sloppy play by Liverpool who are trying to do too much around the Chelsea area with no real intent.

Ball taken off them and Chelsea are up the other end.

Lallana hand ball and another dangerous free kick for the home side.

21:04 UK
Yellow card Fabinho

62' He's brought down Mason Mount in an incredibly dangerous position.

Centrally just outside the area.

This has not been the Brazilian midfielders best night in an LFC shirt.

21:05 UK

And Mount hits it at the crossbar.

21:07 UK
GOAL

Liverpool turn attack into defence, and Ross Barkley smashes it into the net.

This looks a big ask now.

21:09 UK

67' Pedro should have made it 3-0.  Liverpool defence goes AWOL. 

But he hits it straight at Adrian.

21:13 UK
Double LFC sub

70' James Milner and Roberto Firmino replace Curtis Jones and Divock Origi.

21:17 UK
Giroud - crossbar

75' That was agonisingly close for the Chelsea forward.

Poor second half performance from the reds.

21:19 UK
Yellow - Milner

76' Pedro was away there and Milner brings him down just before the half-way line.

A tactical yellow card.

21:23 UK
Last LFC Sub

80' Salah replaces Lallana.

Last throw of the dice.

21:26 UK

83' Robertson corner and Firmino heads across the face of goal.

21:33 UK
Final Chelsea sub

90' Olivier Giroud replaced by Batshuayi.

21:34 UK

91' Into four minutes of injury time.

21:39 UK
FULL TIME

Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool

It's a third defeat in four games for Liverpool who are knocked out of the FA Cup.

Another dire performance.  Fabinho poor, Minamino anonymous.  A real disappointment.

22:17 UK
Klopp post match comments

"It went our way for so long because we defended outstandingly. Usually you don't get a lot of chances against us, but in the last four games we conceded too many goals, that's true."

"The performance tonight was completely different to Watford. Watford was super bad, tonight's was not bad. But we made mistakes."

22:23 UK
Big week ahead

So the FA Cup campaign ends.

Liverpool have two important opportunities to get their season back on track.

A home league game at the weekend v Bournemouth before a crucial 2nd leg against Atletico Madrid.

There can be no room for mistakes in that one.



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