The road to Wembley starts here. Anfield will be the venue for Liverpool vs Accrington Stanley 12:15. It’s only the 2nd competitive meeting between the two sides.

Accrington Stanley who are they? Originally established in 1891, then reformed in 1968, the ‘Owd Reds have never progressed past the 4th of the FA Cup. Famed for a 1980’s British Milk advert, “it’s what Ian Rush drinks”, the club have never gone on to win any major accolades but have been an EFL staple for almost two decades now.

Currently under the managerial guidance of scouser John Doolan the side sit 19th in EFL League Two. However, they come into this one in better form than Liverpool! Victories in their last 2 against Grimsby and Colchester mean Stanley are on the up. They defeated non-league Rushall Olympic 0-2 in the previous round, the game was played on an artificial pitch! Quite the difference.

Veteran Shaun Whalley is their main outlet with 6 goals and 4 assists so far this, he’s previously played for nearby Runcorn Linnets F.C. and Southport FC. Himself and right-back Donald Love will be hoping to make their second appearance at Anfield. They both featured for Shrewsbury Town in their 4th round FA Cup replay in 2020, Liverpool’s youngsters famously won 1-0. Josh Woods appeared out of nowhere amongst Accrington’s u21s after being picked up playing for Sunday league side Clay Brow. He’s scored 5 in all competitions and is an exciting creative threat, and barber.

The only meeting between the two sides happened at Anfield in 1956 at this exact stage of the FA Cup. Club legend Billy Liddell scored 2 in 2 minutes to secure a 2-0 win in-front of a crowd of 48,385.

The last time Liverpool played a 4th tier side at this stage was in 2017. Liverpool hosted Plymouth Argyle and drew 0-0, however the reds went on to win the replay 0-1. The last time Liverpool lost at home in the 3rd round was against Coventry City in 1998.

Accrington’ manager John Doolan said in his pre match press conference “everyone is fit, which is amazing. So, happy days!” And they would be for this one. He made an emphasis on trying to “play” and was clear that the team would be selected on merit, there will be no handouts.

Liverpool’s Thursday training session was cancelled after having to make a diversion to Birmingham Airport due to weather conditions. Arne Slot will only be without Joe Gomez for this one. Jarell Quansah was subbed off against Spurs on Wednesday night but is expected to be fit. Dominik Szoboszlai is expected to return from an illness. I would expect rotation and a possible debut for Liverpool youngster Rio Ngumoha, but Arne wasn’t giving anything away in his press conference.

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