Liverpool saw off Aston Villa with ease to reach the FA Cup’s fourth round.
The hosts were forced to field an line-up of under-23 and under-18 players due to 14 senior members of their first-team testing positive for Covid-19.
It took a fairly strong Reds’ side just four minutes to unpick their young opponents as Sadio Mane powered home a header from Curtis Jones’ cross.
Villa still gave the Premier League champions a scare when teenager Louie Barry’s cool finish drew them level shortly before the half-time interval.
But three goals in quick succession just past the hour from Gini Wijnaldum, Mane and Mohamed Salah gave Liverpool a lead their dominance deserved.
Here were the key talking points from Villa Park:
FA Cup loses its credibility
Take nothing away from Liverpool, who could only beat what was in front of them and did so with little fuss in a straightforward FA Cup tie at Villa Park.
And while Villa certainly impressed, it’s hard not to sympathise with them for having to field a team of youngsters rather than have the game postponed.
For a while, this season has felt like a race against time, to ensure it is completed in time to fit in with next summer’s international tournaments.
But given recent Premier League matches have been called off due to Covid-19, not doing the same for this makes the FA Cup appear a diminished priority.
It has seemed like death by a thousand cuts for some time with football’s oldest club cup competition; this just felt the latest of them.
Klopp negotiates double-edged sword
In spite of their threadbare opponent, it was reassuring to see Jurgen Klopp showing Villa little mercy with a near full-strength Liverpool line-up.
Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Fabinho were just some regulars not given a night off even after barely missing a minute of the hectic festive schedule.
That hasn’t always been the case, with Klopp making a habit of fielding youthful sides in the FA Cup that have yet to progress beyond the fifth round.
Some may question why he chose not to rest more big names, given a depleted opposition and his well-documented concerns over a fixture pile-up.
But after a three-game winless run, this was the sort of game Liverpool needed to get back into their groove, even if this wasn’t always a stroll.
The Reds now have nine days before their next game, a crucial league clash with Manchester United, and at least appeared to leave Villa Park injury-free.
Even if beating a side of teenagers may feel a slightly hollow victory, Klopp deserves credit for showing the FA Cup the respect it deserves.
Reds not so shot-shy anymore
Bad things come in threes and Liverpool clearly had their fill after a recent hat-trick of winless outings before coming up against Villa’s young guns.
Even still, it was refreshing to see Klopp’s players peppering their hosts’ goal throughout this tie, particularly considering the previously dismal stats.
They managed one shot on target in each second half against West Brom, Newcastle and Southampton, with a combined total of just seven overall.
By contrast, this performance was more reminiscent of the old Liverpool as they mustered an impressive 29 shots here with 13 finding the target.
Mane, less prolific lately, netted two impressive headers, while Mohamed Salah, peripheral in Monday’s loss at St Mary’s, delivered a devastating finish.
Perhaps, if you were to be hypercritical of Liverpool, at times they overplayed at Villa Park and were a little guilty of trying to walk the ball in to the net.
That much may be reflected in their 83 per cent share of possession, and the fact they completed 689 passes which dwarfed Villa’s meagre tally of 83.
When they didn’t over-complicate things, it tended to pay off handsomely – evidenced by three of their four goals all arriving from first-touch finishes.
But that is nit-picking into a largely impressive display.
Thiago makes the difference
Liverpool deserved to be ahead by half-time, but there’s no doubt the introduction of Thiago Alcantara helped them turn the game in their favour.
At times in the first half, it felt like the visitors were playing in front of Villa’s kids, unable to make in-roads against a side content with sitting deep.
That changed when the Spain international replaced Henderson at the beginning of the second half, though, who kept it simple but to great effect.
For instance, for Liverpool’s fourth, rather than playing the easy pass wide to Neco Williams, he moved it forward to Xherdan Shaqiri, who assisted Salah.
Three successful dribbles bettered every other player, and was unfortunate not to score when a rasping long-range drive crashed against the bar late on.
It’s been an arduous beginning to Thiago’s Liverpool career following his September move, having missed more than two months through injury.
He didn’t get going at Southampton on Monday, but if he can replicate this showing, that £27 million transfer fee will soon look like money well spent.