Liverpool went through to the fourth round of the FA Cup with a slender win in their replay against Plymouth Argyle, thanks to an early headed goal from Lucas Leiva. With Jurgen Klopp again choosing a young side – albeit with the goalscorer and Coutinho thrown in for experience – Plymouth failed to conjure up an effective attack, meaning the solitary goal was sufficient to seal the result.
Liverpool also had a penalty saved late in the game, but it wouldn’t make a difference to the result. Here are the player ratings from the fixture.
Plymouth Argyle
Luke McCormick – 6/10
He could have done better to save the early header from Lucas which he did manage to get a palm to. McCormich managed to keep hold of Origi’s weak penalty well, keeping Plymouth’s slender hopes alive until the end.
Yann Songo'o – 5.5/10
Songo’o conceded a late penalty with a reckless challenge on Alberto Moreno that sent the full-back tumbling. He would have been grateful to see it saved, preventing his defensive efforts through the rest of the game coming completely undone.
Sonny Bradley – 6/10
A dominant presence at the back, Bradley won the most aerial duels in the game (5) to deny Liverpool any attempts at increasing their lead.
Oscar Threlkeld – 6.5/10
He cancelled out the threat on the opposition flank, and kept things on his side very quiet for most of the game.
Ben Purrington – 6/10
Liverpool enjoyed a little more sway on his side of the defence, yet never really broke through. He picked up a booking for a cynical tug of the shirt in added time.
David Fox – 7/10
The architect of some deep lying cross-field balls that were aimed at putting pressure on Moreno, Fox came close to scoring for his side in the first half.
Jordan Slew – 5.5/10
Slew put in a good shift but was slightly wasteful in possession, especially on a couple of good attacking situations that came to nothing because of his errors.
Graham Carey – 7/10
A very calming influence with the ball at his feet, he almost got Plymouth on level terms but couldn’t make the right contact.
Ryan Donaldson – 5.5/10
He was effectively played out of the game by Liverpool’s possession. Donaldson maintained the Plymouth shape well, but could do very little else.
Jake Jervis – 7.5/10
Jervis had Plymouth’s best attempt through an athletic effort that struck the far post with Karius rooted to his spot. Easily the best player for the home side, he beat his marker often and put crosses into the box.
Paul Garita – 4.5/10
Garita failed to get any power on his headers, and was muscled off a great chance to equalise by Alexander Arnold. He didn’t turn up for the big game.
Substitutes
Craig Tanner – 4.5/10
Tanner failed to complete most of his passes; not quite what his manager would have hoped for.
Louis Rooney – NA
Rooney was isolated up front, and only managed 4 touches on the ball.
Nauris Bulvitis – NA
Bulvitis got one touch of the ball; insufficient to make an impact.
Liverpool
Loris Karius – 5.5/10
The German didn’t have too much to do in the game. He didn’t inspire confidence with a couple of attempts at coming out to claim crosses, and failed to catch on more than one occasion.
Joe Gomez – 7/10
Solid in defence, the 19-year-old turned up in various areas of the pitch to win the ball from the opposition throughout the game. He had the second most touches of the ball out of anyone on the pitch.
Lucas Leiva – 7.5/10
Lucas scored a rare goal with a header to give his side an early lead and a fairly comfortable position throughout the game. He handled defensive duties well, justifying his experienced presence on the pitch.
Trent Alexander-Arnold – 7/10
The youngster was involved in a few attacking runs, and had a couple of useful touches on the ball in the opposition box. He was untroubled at the back, mostly.
Alberto Moreno – 7.5/10
The Spaniard dealt with several diagonal ballss aimed in his direction, even with the opposition attempting to double up on him. He won a penalty with a bursting run into the box.
Philippe Coutinho – 7.5/10
Coutinho was the difference between the two sides. He assisted Lucas’ goal with the corner kick and almost picked out Alexander-Arnold for a second with a diagonal into the box.
Kevin Stewart – 6.5/10
Another one of Liverpool’s youngsters to put in a composed performance, he orchestrated play well and kept shape to prevent Plymouth from carrying any threat down the middle.
Ovie Ejaria – 6.5/10
He tracked back well to help out his full back on many occasions, and moved the ball along swiftly in attack. Ejaria picked up a yellow card for a professional foul on Jervis to prevent an attack on the break.
Ben Woodburn – 6/10
Showed immense composure on the ball, belying his age. Woodburn rotated positions well and kept the ball moving but let himself down with a couple of bad touches.
Divock Origi – 5/10
Combined well with the attackers around him, but did not really do justice to his role as a relatively experienced campaigner in a very young squad. He missed a penalty with a woeful attempt that led to an anxious finish for the Reds.
Daniel Sturridge (76th minute) (6/10)
The Englishman’s brightest moment was a quick one-two with Origi, following which he almost scored the second for Liverpool. Quite telling that it was the only shot on target from his five attempts.
Substitutes
Harry Wilson – 6/10
Wilson chased down a back-pass and nearly diverted McCormick’s kick into the Plymouth net.
Sheyi Ojo – 6.5/10
Pacy on the wings, he gave Plymouth’s tiring fullbacks problems on several occasions. He managed to get in three crosses, none of which were converted by a wasteful Liverpool attack. Received a yellow card for a blatant dive.
