It was Takumi Minamino‘s time to shine again in a cup competition for Liverpool, this time notching a brace to send the Reds through to the quarter-finals in the FA Cup.
It was Premier League opposition for Liverpool in the FA Cup on Wednesday and a first-half double from Minamino proved enough for a 2-1 win.
The victory was one built on the club’s depth once more, with 10 changes made from the side that started at Wembley only three days prior.
Jurgen Klopp‘s side are now in the last eight of the competition which is to take place later this month, keeping their hopes of a historic season well and truly alive.
And the latest victory, the 11th in a row, was one built on the clinical edge from Minamino.
Minamino for the cup
It has not been the smoothest times at Anfield for the Japanese international, but his influence in the cup competitions of the Reds is unparalleled.
A trusty squad option, the No. 18 has thrived home and away in the domestic cups, scoring nine goals since he arrived in the League Cup and FA Cup combined.
As per Opta, it is more than twice as many as any other Liverpool player since he arrived in January 2020, talk about specialist impact.
And that’s now two goals in both domestic cups against the same opponent for Minamino, in the same season.
A key catalyst to the success in the League Cup, Minamino had one of his best games in a red shirt against Norwich and his contributions are not taken lightly inside Anfield.
“He’s a great guy. What a guy, what a player,” Milner said after his brace.
750 and counting!
In fact, Minamino’s first of the night was not only impressive in its strike but also in the fact that it was the 750th goal scored in all competitions under Klopp.
It has taken 360 games to reach the figure, with only three other managers in club history having surpassed the milestone.
Taki! That was the 750th goal of the Klopp era. The top 10 scorers:
Salah 152
Mané 110
Firmino 95
Origi 40
Coutinho 37
Jota 30
Milner and Sturridge 25
Wijnaldum 22
Oxlade-Chamberlain 17— Andrew Beasley ? (@BassTunedToRed) March 2, 2022
Tom Watson (1226 goals in 742 games), Bill Shankly (1307 in 783 games) and Bob Paisley (955 in 535 games) are the only others to lay claim to the figure.
A first for Klopp
There’s not much Klopp has not achieved with the Reds but he has now taken one step closer to the FA Cup than ever before, reaching the quarter-finals for the very first time.
This is his seventh season in the competition and prior to this campaign had a single third-round exit, four in the fourth round and one in the fifth round.
The last time Liverpool progressed this far was in the 2014/15 season under Brendan Rodgers, and let’s not rehash what unfolded in the semi-final against Aston Villa.
Liverpool are now just another win away from another Wembley appearance in the final four of the cup…
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