A review of Wednesday's action in the FA Cup, where Chelsea fought back against Luton and Liverpool breezed past Norwich
Luton 2-3 Chelsea
Chelsea capped another seismic day in the Stamford Bridge club’s history by narrowly avoiding an FA Cup shock, edging past Luton 3-2 at Kenilworth Road.
Romelu Lukaku tapped home Timo Werner’s cross late on to thwart the Hatters’ dreams of a first quarter-final since 1994, on the day when Roman Abramovich signalled the impending end of his Blues reign.
Werner scored and made both Chelsea’s other goals on a solid night for the Germany forward, with Saul Niguez also clipping home.
But any notions of a nice and easy night were scotched as soon as the unchallenged Reece Burke thumped in a second-minute header for the second-tier hosts.
Harry Cornick’s collected finish put Luton 2-1 up at half-time and dreaming of a major upset over last season’s beaten FA Cup finalists.
But Chelsea’s extra power and nous eventually applied enough of a squeeze to subdue the Hatters.
And so, Chelsea step into the sixth round, with eyes still firmly on another final having lost Sunday’s Carabao Cup showpiece to Liverpool on penalties.
Southampton 3-1 West Ham
Romain Perraud’s stunning first-half rocket lit up St Mary’s as Southampton marched into the FA Cup quarter-finals by dispatching Premier League rivals West Ham 3-1.
French full-back Perraud stylishly set Saints on course for victory with his first goal for the club, lashing home a swerving strike from more than 25 yards.
Michail Antonio briefly levelled for the Hammers but James Ward-Prowse’s penalty – awarded following VAR intervention – and a late Armando Broja goal sent the hosts through.
Ward-Prowse coolly converted from 12 yards with just over 20 minutes remaining after Craig Dawson was adjudged to have brought down substitute Broja as he bore down on goal.
David Moyes’ high-flying Hammers had little answer to falling behind for the second time and now have the remainder of the campaign to focus on chasing Europa League glory and Champions League qualification.
Liverpool 2-1 Norwich
Cup specialist Takumi Minamino kept Liverpool’s quest for an unprecedented quadruple on track with both goals in a 2-1 win over Norwich as Jurgen Klopp reached his first FA Cup quarter-final.
The Japan international has made the majority of his starts in knockout competitions and in a team registering 10 changes from the one which won the Carabao Cup at Wembley on Sunday his was an influential one.
Minamino now has seven goals and one assist in eight cup games this season and since the start of 2020 the 27-year-old has scored more than twice as many goals in domestic cup competitions (nine) than any other Liverpool player.
Lukas Rupp’s goal 14 minutes from time gave the visitors a lifeline but even a second-string Liverpool team were too experienced to succumb to late pressure as they booked their place in the sixth round for the first time since 2015.
Despite playing a significant role in his side reaching the League Cup final, Minamino did not even get on at Wembley but he used that disappointment to his advantage by seizing his opportunity against the Canaries.
He was a threat all night cutting in off the right and he instigated the moves which ultimately led to both his goals extending Liverpool’s winning run to 11 matches, their best since August 2007.
