Liverpool are back in action as they host League Two outfit Accrington Stanley in a classic tie in the third round of the FA Cup. The Reds host the Lancashire minnows at Anfield in what will be an intriguing clash between the two sides.
Arne Slot is sure to make a number of changes to his Liverpool team, who were beaten 1-0 in the semi-final first leg against Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday evening. Youngsters such as Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha are all vying for places, with Federico Chiesa and Harvey Elliott also expected to be involved.
The Reds reached the quarter-finals of the competition last season before losing 4-3 in an eventful match with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Paul Gorst, Ian Doyle and Theo Squires will be at Anfield for live team news, score updates, commentary and analysis from the match.
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Key Events
Full time
Full time: Liverpool 4-0 Accrington.
No missteps from Arne Slot's side. Minutes for Elliott and Chiesa important in the wider scheme as the Reds go into the hat for the 4th round.
In off the post
Chiesa scores his first goal with a low drive that cushions in off the post from about 22 yards or so. Good strike and he's deserved that.
Danns knocks in
Chiesa's shot is saved into the path of Danns, who sticks away his third FA Cup goal for the Reds. 3-0. It was the young striker who initially played Chiesa in to begin with.
Love heads over
Donald Love heads over over from close as Accrington nearly catch Liverpool cold with a short corner.
Chiesa involved
Chiesa offering a bit more direct pace down this right-hand side than Elliott did, who prefers to drift in field on his favoured left foot. Alexander-Arnold is trying to find him with those passes down the line. I thought Chiesa might have got his shot off earlier following his immediate introduction but he could only force a corner with a blocked strike. He's been willing and lively so far in a short cameo.
Chiesa on, Szoboszlai off
Dominik Szoboszlai is making way for Federico Chiesa for the second half.
Half-time ratings
Caoimhin Kelleher 6
One amusing moment when he crept forward with the ball at his feet completely unchallenged for 25 yards.
Trent Alexander-Arnold 7
Good swift pass to release Nunez to set up the opener and then thumped in the second from range just before half-time.
Wataru Endo 8
Again playing at centre-back, excellent in reading the game and clever use of possession.
Jarell Quansah 6
With so little defending before break, kept matters simple with his passing.
Kostas Tsimikas 7
Impressive moving forward and delivery from crosses a potent threat for Liverpool.
Tyler Morton 6
Neat and tidy in midfield and slowly began to become an influence.
Dominik Szoboszlai 6
Took a little while to settle after recent absence but alert to win ball to spark opener and teed up second.
Harvey Elliott 6
Some good searching passes and became more prominent before interval, particularly with one good defensive tackle.
Diogo Jota 7
Slightly wayward early on as he acclimatised to being number 10 but began to cause problems when dropping deep and in right place to top home opener.
Rio Ngumoha 7
Announced himself on debut with some tricky runs down the left before break and released ball at right time.
Darwin Nunez 7
Missed a good chance early on but strong endeavour and good work to set up opening goal.
Lovely hit
Superb stuff from the captain, who makes it 2-0 with a wonderful effort via Dominik Szoboszlai's lay-off.
Curled into the top corner from just outside the box.
"The Scouser in our team" being belted out on the Kop.
Great strike.
Alexander-Arnold being man-marked
Looks like Ben Woods has been tasked with an old-school man-marking job on Trent Alexander-Arnold. Difficult task given he moves from full-back to centre-mid at his own leisure.
Liverpool should settle
That should settle Liverpool down a bit more now. Not that had been too much wrong beforehand but if there were any nerves creeping in before the half-hour mark, Jota has opened the scoring and now the Reds can play with a bit more freedom. It was a straightforward enough goal but showed how dangerous Liverpool are in transition. Accrington had a free-kick cleared and seconds later it was 1-0.
No messing from Jota
Jota taps home from close range after Nunez's low ball across as Liverpool counter after a cleared Accrington free-kick. Szoboszlai and Alexander-Arnold also involved.
No real chances yet
Still no real sense that the breakthrough is imminent. Not many chances for the Reds so far other than those two Nunez efforts. Jota in the deeper role isn't clicking right now. Ngumoha has been lively at least.
Intensity
Fair to say there isn't that much intensity to Liverpool's game at the moment.
A much-changed side is getting used to each other with a few players out of position.
Accrington will be happy with the opening 20 minutes.
Second chance for Nunez
Nunez smashes over from a rebound after Crellin savers low from Alexander-Arnold's drive. Good move involving Szoboszlai, Ngumoha and Tsimikas. Again, he should have done better.
Early ponderings
It's really not warm here and the underneath of the roof in all four stands is thawing out from ice, providing the occasional splash for fans watching on.
Liverpool have as expected had almost all of the ball and it'll be a matter for Accrington of hanging on for as long as possible and seeing what they can do on the counter-attack or set-pieces. Which I seem to write almost every game about the opposition.
Nunez chance
Nunez almost in from Elliott reaching a Tsimikas cross to the back stick. A bit behind him but maybe could do better. A first chance for the Reds.
Ngumoha
I've seen Rio Ngumoha a few times this season but I have to say he already looks built for this level of football. He is a bit of a unit for his age. He'll combine that with electric pace and even quicker feet too.
Where's yer atmosphere?!
I suspect Liverpool fans might have the atmosphere - or lack thereof - thrown at them today as some sort of jibe. It's sub-zero, it's the FA Cup and it's a 12.15pm kick-off, so I'm not expecting Chelsea 2005. Hopefully the players on the pitch can warm things up with a goal-laden display. We'll see.
Chilly work
Accrington have been given most of the lower tier of the Anfield Road Stand.
The game appears a sell-out and everyone is mostly cold. It's presently -1 and feels like -6.
Brr.
His name is Rio
I am looking forward to seeing Rio Ngumoha this afternoon as he becomes the youngest ever player to start a game for Liverpool at 16 years and 135 days.
The winger arrived from Chelsea in the summer to plenty of fanfare, as far as youth deals go, and it was made clear how angry the Lodoners were at having their player poached from under their noses.
Club staff have told the ECHO about how highly rate him and feel they have captured one of the finest teenagers in all of European football. The task now is to show why he has that reputation, even if there will be zero pressure on him today and for a good while yet.
Still, if you haven't seen anything of him in the academy teams this season, you're in a for a treat, his footwork is lightning fast and he will run all day at the Accrington defence.
The FA Cup
Why are the authorities trying to kill the FA Cup?
Games on a Thursday night, ties at stupidly early hours, no replays, what the flip is this competition coming to?
Still, it's better than the League Cup where some teams - such as Liverpool this season - only enter at the round of 32.
