Brighton and Hove Albion will host Liverpool again after the Reds won their FA Cup third round replay at Molineux this evening (Tuesday 17 January).
Harvey Elliott fired Liverpool into the fourth round with the only goal of the match against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The 19-year-old midfielder grabbed his fourth goal of the season as the holders held on for a 1-0 win – Liverpool’s first since the start of the year.
The lights went out at Molineux inside the opening minute but Liverpool stoked the embers of a fading season to keep their FA Cup defence alive.
Their reward is a return trip to the Amex on Sunday 29 January – a fortnight after the Seagulls thumped Jurgen Klopp’s side 3-0 in the Premier League.
It is hard to think that they will be as wretched again after a performance that Klopp said was the worst of his career. But their domestic campaign will be all but over with another Amex defeat.
The Reds were given a reprieve when their home tie with Wolves ended 2-2. Mo Salah scored a controversial goal before the visitors were left furious when Toti Gomes’s strike was dubiously ruled out amid a VAR failure.
Liverpool did not waste their second chance and, for all Wolves’ efforts after dominating the second half, the hosts never really posed a serious threat.
They also started brightly, having announced the signing of Pablo Sarabia from Paris St Germain before the kick-off.
But then, after an opening attack, Wolves’ stadium was plunged briefly into darkness by a power cut.
The hosts might have wished for a longer delay as the lights swiftly returned, allowing Liverpool to see their way to a 13th-minute winner.
Fabio Carvalho and Kostas Tsimikas played their way out of trouble, with Thiago Alcantara sweeping wide to Elliott to run into the ever-increasing space.
The England Under-21 international did not need a second invitation and with Jose Sa out of position he beat the scrambling goalkeeper from 25 to 30 yards.
The much-changed visitors continued to threaten and Cody Gakpo drilled over shortly afterwards before Carvalho had a goal disallowed, rightly, for offside after another flowing move.
They could be seen as warning shots although Roberto De Zerbi will be keen to see his energised Brighton side keep a clean sheet again – and add to their six-goal tally against Liverpool so far this season.
