Konstantinos Tsimikas scored the winning penalty as Liverpool kept their quadruple hopes alive with a 6-5 shoot-out success over Chelsea in an absorbing FA Cup final.
Extra-time substitute Tsimikas sent Edouard Mendy the wrong way with the decisive spot-kick after Alisson saved from Mason Mount, as Jurgen Klopp’s side secured a repeat of February’s EFL Cup final win after two hours of action ended 0-0.
Liverpool had been dealt a huge blow when Mohamed Salah was forced off through injury in the first half, with Virgil van Dijk and Andrew Robertson also substituted after 90 minutes were through.
But the Reds dug deep to condemn Chelsea to their third consecutive FA Cup final loss, and they could yet add the Premier League and Champions League trophies to their domestic cup double in the coming weeks.
Having started brightly, Liverpool were denied a ninth-minute opener when Luis Diaz forced a one-on-one save from Mendy, before Christian Pulisic side-footed wide at the other end.
Marcos Alonso forced a near-post stop from Alisson as the game opened up, while Diogo Jota turned Robertson’s inviting cross over having replaced the injured Salah after just 33 minutes.
Chelsea went close three times in an extraordinary start to the second half, with Alonso volleying narrowly wide and clipping the crossbar with a free-kick, either side of Pulisic forcing Alisson into a diving save.
Liverpool hit the woodwork twice at the end of a frantic 90 minutes, Diaz striking Mendy’s right-hand post before Robertson turned James Milner’s cross onto the other upright as the contest, like the EFL Cup final between the two teams, continued into extra-time.
After another goalless 30 minutes, Cesar Azpilicueta’s miss from the spot looked set to prove decisive until Chelsea were handed a reprieve when Sadio Mane was denied by Senegal international team-mate Mendy.
But Alisson went on to make a heroic save from Mount’s kick, allowing unlikely hero Tsimikas to find the bottom-left corner and hand the Reds their first FA Cup triumph since 2006.
What does it mean? Liverpool keep quadruple bid alive with cup double
Despite suffering a number of setbacks and missing their first chance to win the shoot-out through Mane, Klopp’s team found a way to claim their second trophy of an incredible campaign.
The Reds have now won both English domestic cups for the first time since doing so in 2000-01.
Liverpool ended that season with three trophies after lifting the UEFA Cup, and with two more Premier League games and a Champions League final on the horizon, could yet better that achievement.
Reds overcome Salah setback
Liverpool fans had every right to be worried when Salah sat down innocuously just after the half-hour mark, having suffered an injury which forced him to be replaced in the first half for just the second time in his Reds career – the other being the Reds’ 2018 Champions League final loss to Real Madrid.
Unlike on that occasion, Liverpool found a way to lift the trophy, though they will hope their 30-goal forward is fit to lead their fight for two more trophies this month.
Evergreen Henderson leads Liverpool to glory
Much talk had focused on the absence of Liverpool enforcer Fabinho ahead of this contest, but captain Jordan Henderson produced an assured performance as the Reds overcame a spirited Chelsea side.
In doing so, Henderson avenged the Reds’ 2012 final loss to Chelsea, which he started. He is the first player to have a gap of 10 years between FA Cup final appearances for the same side since David O’Leary for Arsenal (13 years between 1980 and 1993).
Key Opta Stats:
– Liverpool have lifted the FA Cup for an eighth time – only Arsenal (14) and Manchester United (12) have won it more often.
– Jurgen Klopp is the first German manager to win the FA Cup, beating his compatriot Thomas Tuchel in this final.
– He has also become only the second manager to win the European Cup, EFL Cup, the top-flight title and the FA Cup with the same English club, joining Alex Ferguson.
– Chelsea have become the first team in the history of the FA Cup to lose the final in three consecutive years (2020 vs Arsenal, 2021 vs Leicester City, 2022 vs Liverpool).
– The Blues have contested five penalty shoot-outs this season – no other top-flight team has ever been involved in more than three in a single season.
– Thiago Silva became the oldest outfield player (37 years and 234 days) to start an FA Cup final since Stanley Matthews in the 1953 final for Blackpool, aged 38.
What’s next?
Liverpool travel to Southampton for their penultimate game of the Premier League season on Tuesday, where they will likely need a win to keep the title race alive. Chelsea, meanwhile, host Leicester City on Thursday.