Liverpool’s old guard and academy talent help right wrongs at Wolves

Liverpool spent more than £450m last summer to rebuild their team, but this was an evening for the elder statesmen and home-grown talent of the club. Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah, with their Premier League titles and Champions League winners’ medals, booked a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Curtis Jones, from the club’s academy, also scored.

All three have attracted interest from other clubs, and their position as regular starters was not guaranteed after the signings made before the campaign. Salah turned on Arne Slot and the club after losing his place, Tottenham made a bid for Robertson in January and Jones has been on the wanted list of several clubs.

With none of the summer signings starting, those three shone at Molineux along with 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha, also from the academy. Despite a crisis at Anfield in their title defence this season, they are now just one win away from a trip to Wembley.

How Liverpool fans would love another two trips to the national stadium and to win a trophy in such a difficult year. The Cup has not been a route for regular success over the years, this being the third time in the last 11 years they have got this far. Their last quarter-final was when they won the competition in 2022.

This was a huge contrast to the defeat here earlier in the week in terms of the result, although Slot saw the same pattern as the 2-1 loss. “Of course it is the perfect response when you look at the result, but every stat is exactly the same as three days ago,” Slot said. “The execution was better than three days ago.”