Chelsea vs Liverpool LIVE: FA Cup final result, final score and reaction as Liverpool win penalty shootout
Chelsea 0-0 Liverpool (Liverpool win 6-5 on penalties): Follow reaction from Wembley as Liverpool beat Chelsea on penalties
Liverpool have won the FA Cup after beating Chelsea on penalties at Wembley. Kostas Tsimikas scored the winning penalty in sudden-death, after Alisson saved from Mason Mount.
Liverpool and Chelsea met in a rematch of February’s Carabao Cup final, and this encounter played out in remarkably similar fashion. Both sides had several opportunities to win the match in normal time and althought the frantic nature of the contest slowed in extra time, it followed 90 breathless minutes at Wembley.
Liverpool made a bright start and threatened early through Luis Diaz, who was denied by Edouard Mendy in the first chance of the match, but Chelsea came back into it in what was a level first half. Alisson also made a good save to stop Marcos Alonso while Christian Pulisic and substitute Diogo Jota had chances, but it was an injury to Mohamed Salah that was the most notable incident of the first half, with the Liverpool forward coming off on 32 minutes with a groin problem.
It was Chelsea’s turn to start quickly after the break, as Alonso went close and Alisson saved Pulisic’s effort, before Alonso hit the crossbar with a free-kick. Diaz and Jota were next to whistle shots narrowly wide, and then Andy Robertson hit the post with a volley from close range. As the final crept closer to extra time, Diaz curled a shot narrowly wide on the breakaway to almost win the final in the closing seconds.
Follow reaction from Chelsea vs Liverpool in the 2022 FA Cup final, below:
How Liverpool reached the FA Cup final
Diogo Jota’s 78th-minute goal was enough to end Nottingham Forest’s valiant FA Cup run. The City Ground had been a graveyard for Premier League sides with Arsenal and Leicester both exiting at the hands of former Reds academy coach Steve Cooper’s exciting side. The match hinged on a three-minute spell preceding Jota’s close-range strike when Forest’s Philip Zinckernagel shot wide with only goalkeeper Alisson Becker to beat.
How Liverpool reached the FA Cup final
Cup specialist Minamino scored both goals to put Jurgen Klopp into his first FA Cup quarter-final. In a team registering 10 changes from one which won the Carabao Cup three days previously the Japan international took his tally to seven goals in eight cup games for the season. Lukas Rupp’s goal 14 minutes from time gave the visitors a lifeline but they could not prevent Liverpool booking a place in the last eight for the first time since 2015.
How Liverpool reached the FA Cup final
Teenager Harvey Elliott marked his return from almost five months out with a serious ankle injury with his first goal for the club. Diogo Jota and Takumi Minamino both scored in the second half before the 18-year-old Elliott, sidelined since a fracture dislocation at Leeds in September, produced a brilliant swivelled finish in front of the Kop. New £37.5million signing Luis Diaz also made his debut, before Cardiff substitute Rubin Colwill scored an 80th-minute consolation.
How Liverpool reached the FA Cup final
Seventeen-year-old Kaide Gordon became Liverpool’s youngest FA Cup goalscorer when he equalised Daniel Udoh’s surprise opening goal for the League One visitors. The £1million signing from Derby last season, aged 17 years and 96 days, started the comeback on only his second appearance which was completed with two goals from midfielder Fabinho, the first a penalty, and a Roberto Firmino backheel.
How Chelsea reached the FA Cup final
A tired-looking Chelsea laboured through a goalless first hour, before Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s powerful drive broke the deadlock. Palace were unable to find another gear, and Mason Mount’s neat finish sealed the Blues’ win.
How Chelsea reached the FA Cup final
Lukaku and Ziyech handed Chelsea a stress-free victory on the pitch, amid one of the most hectic times off it. The Blues were unable to sell their full allocation of tickets for the Riverside Stadium clash, after owner Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK Government. Downing Street froze Abramovich’s UK assets having claimed to have proven his links to Russian president Vladimir Putin. The Government allowed Chelsea to continue trading, but only under strict terms of a temporary licence. The Blues had no real pressure dealing with Middlesbrough, however, and progressed to the last four.
How Chelsea reached the FA Cup final
Roman Abramovich announced he had put Chelsea up for sale just hours before kick-off. Chelsea managed to shake off any distractions, then also a spirited and threatening Luton. Reece Burke put the hosts ahead just two minutes in, before Saul Niguez levelled midway through the first half. Harry Cornick rocked the Blues again by putting the Hatters 2-1 up, but Chelsea equalised through Werner before Lukaku grabbed the winner.
How Chelsea reached the FA Cup final
Chelsea 2 Plymouth 1 (fourth round, Feb 5)
Kepa Arrizabalaga was the extra-time hero for Chelsea, saving Ryan Hardie’s spot-kick to sneak the Blues through without the need for a shoot-out. Macaulay Gillesphey stole an early lead for Argyle to shock Thomas Tuchel’s men, before Cesar Azpilicueta levelled with a poacher’s finish just before half-time. Chelsea could not crack the visitors, however, with the game drifting into extra time. Marcos Alonso’s effort had Chelsea edging towards victory, only for that late penalty to add yet more drama. Plymouth hoped to force a shoot-out, but instead Kepa saved Hardie’s spot-kick to send Chelsea through.
How Chelsea reached the FA Cup final
Chelsea have reached their third FA Cup final in a row and will take on Liverpool in the showpiece on Saturday. Here’s how Thomas Tuchel’s Blues’ route to another Wembley showdown.
Chelsea 5 Chesterfield 1 (third round, Jan 8)
Chelsea cruised through their opening encounter, with Timo Werner, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Romelu Lukaku and Andreas Christensen all on target in the first half. Hakim Ziyech added a fifth from the penalty spot 10 minutes after the break, with Chesterfield claiming a late consolation through Akwasi Asante.
Liverpool vs Chelsea is a modern rivalry steeped in FA Cup history
A modern rivalry, steeped in FA Cup history. Tony Evans remembers Liverpool’s FA Cup semi-final victory over Chelsea in 1965, that proved a turning point in the club’s history.
“There is always a sense of theatre around matches between Chelsea and Liverpool.. The teams meet today at Wembley in the FA Cup final and if the match has anything like the drama of February’s EFL Cup final, it will be a classic.
“Jurgen Klopp’s team emerged victorious three months ago after a humdinger of a 0-0 draw and a penalty shootout where the tension built to unbearable levels. For much of the past two decades there have been attempts to manufacture a rivalry between the clubs that goes beyond the natural levels of antagonism. This fixture has not needed an extra helping of friction. It has an edge that goes back way beyond the Jose Mourinho-Rafa Benitez period of the 2000s and some of the first shots were fired in the FA Cup.
“Both clubs took a long time to make an impact on the world’s oldest knockout tournament. Their 1965 semi-final showdown had huge significance. One of the cliches used around the cup is that it gives a chance for ‘unfashionable teams’ to capture the public imagination. In the mid-60s, Liverpool and Chelsea were the most fashionable sides in the game.”
Liverpool vs Chelsea is a modern rivalry steeped in FA Cup history
Today’s FA Cup final will be the latest chapter in a story of titantic battles between Liverpool and Chelsea, but it is their semi-final clash of 1965 that remains the rivalry’s most significant
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