A much-changed Liverpool side saw off Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton in the FA Cup at the weekend to progress to the fourth round and leave the Reds with the possibility of emulating Manchester United’s 1999 treble win.
Jurgen Klopp gave Curtis Jones his second start for Liverpool, and he did not disappoint scoring an outstanding strike to secure a 1-0 victory. Everton invited the 18-year-old to shoot from the edge of the area, affording him the luxury of time and space to wrap his foot around the ball and send it curling out of a bamboozled Jordan Pickford’s reach and into the top corner.
But scoring a sensational first goal for Liverpool was not the only contribution of Jones’ game. He made the most of the opportunity Klopp handed to him by running proceedings from midfield and providing a potent attacking threat, against what was a mostly full-strength Toffees side. Jones progressed possession forwards at every opportunity, playing a game-high three key passes to put teammates through on goal. However, none of them were able to capitalise on the opportunities the teenager crafted.
Despite the daunting prospect of a first Merseyside derby, Jones was exceptionally assured in possession, with no player who started the match maintaining a higher pass accuracy than the 18-year-old’s 88.6 per cent. He may not have seen as much of the ball as Pedro Chirivella and Adam Lallana alongside him, but when Jones was in possession, he did more than the pair to hurt the opposition with his passing.
Defensively Jones assisted his teammates in making a single tackle, though it was in an attacking sense that he impressed most as he was not required to strain himself at the back with Liverpool keeping the majority of possession. Though occasionally the youngster was to blame for conceding the ball cheaply to the Reds rivals, Jones was dispossessed twice and made four unsuccessful touches which is an area Klopp will be keen to improve.
Though overall Jones’ manager will have been ecstatic, he was able to grab his first goal for Liverpool and a decisive one at that. The sumptuous curling effort was Jones’ only shot on target, but the bend and dip on the ball deceived Pickford, leaving the England number one stranded. Such a memorable goal may afford the teenager a chance of more first-team action when Liverpool find out their opponents for the FA Cup fourth round.
