Liverpool Echo: Reds hit Seagulls for six

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.

WRITES NEIL JONES

Liverpool will play Stoke City in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, after beating Championship side by Brighton & Hove Albion 6-1 on a bizarre afternoon at Anfield.

Martin Skrtel, Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez were all on target, on a day in which the visitors, having levelled through Kazenga Lua-Lua in the first-half, managed to score three own-goals.

Kenny Dalglish made three changes from the side which lost at Manchester United last time out, handing starts to Jamie Carragher, Charlie Adam and Andy Carroll, with Daniel Agger, Jay Spearing and Dirk Kuyt making way.

Agger, along with Craig Bellamy, was not even included on the substitutes' bench, perhaps with one eye on next weekend's Carling Cup final with Cardiff City.

Their Championship visitors, beaten 2-0 by the Reds in the Carling Cup back in September, also made three changes, leaving Scouser Craig Noone on the bench, as well as club record signing Craig Mackail-Smith.

Stewart Downing, whose sole goal for the Reds so far was in the third round win over Oldham Athletic, drew a tip over from visiting 'keeper Peter Brezovan in the fifth minute.

And from the resulting corner, Liverpool were in front.

Steven Gerrard whipped the ball in from the left, and with Brighton's defence preoccupied with marking Carroll, Skrtel got in front of his marker to glance home at the front post.

Sam Vokes shot straight at Pepe Reina as Brighton sought to respond immediately, while Gerrard fizzed a 25-yard effort wide on the quarter of an hour mark, as the game settled to a rather pedestrian pace.

Brighton, though, found themselves level in the 17th minute. Kazenga Lua-Lua was fouled by Jordan Henderson 30 yards from goal, and when the free-kick was laid short, the former Newcastle wide-man drilled the ball through a crumbling Liverpool wall and low into Pepe Reina's right-hand corner for his second goal in as many games.

Downing, who had broke from the wall, had a chance to restore the Reds' advantage three minutes later after a slick one-two with Luis Suarez, but saw his clipped cross cleared from the six-yard box by Lewis Dunk.

Jose Enrique was next to try his luck, dragging wide on his less-favoured right-foot after 25 minutes, while Suarez fired off target from distance soon after.

The Uruguayan, who started slowly, was starting to threaten. Two minutes later he cut inside a retreating Dunk and prodded goalwards with the outside of his right-foot. Brezovan was beaten, but Inigo Calderon got back to clear the ball off the line. Adam then fired over from 25 yards after collecting a Suarez pass.

And then Carroll, who was embroiled in a running battle with Gordon Greer, headed Gerrard's pinpoint centre inches over the crossbar, as Liverpool began to dominate.

But it was Brighton who came close to taking the lead four minutes before half-time, with the lively Lua-Lua skinning Glen Johnson, running at Carragher then firing low into the side-netting.

It was to prove a false omen; Gerrard then had a free-kick turned over the bar by Brezovan at the other end.

And two minutes before the break, Liverpool were back in front.

Adam's corner from the right was punched into the air by Brezovan, with Suarez controlling the dropping ball superbly amid three Brighton challenges. His effort was stopped by the recovering 'keeper, but Johnson reacted quickest to head goalwards, and when Calderon headed the ball off the line, it ricocheted in via the unfortunate Bridcutt.

After the break Johnson, an influential figure down the right, curled a left-footed effort over the bar, while Henderson diverted Gerrard's 25-yarder just wide after a surging run from Enrique.

A superb last-ditch challenge from Greer denied Suarez on 53 minutes, after Brezovan had completely missed Henderson's punt forward under pressure from the Uruguayan.

Both Downing and Henderson stung the visiting 'keeper's palms soon after, before Liverpool added the third on 57 minutes with their best move of the game.

Gerrard's smart pass was collected by a raiding Downing down the left, and his low pull-back was swept home, first-time, by Carroll from 14 yards.

Gerrard wasted a great counter-attacking chance soon after, overhitting his pass to Downing following a 50-yard burst, while Downing himself, an increasingly prominent presence, drilled wide of the near post on 64 minutes.

Brighton, chasing the game, sent on Mackail-Smith as well as former Spanish international Vicente, and threatened through a 30-yard strike from Noone.

But they fell further behind 19 minutes from time, and again it was the luckless Bridcutt who was responsible.

In fairness, Brighton should have dealt better with Henderson's up-and-under, with both Alan Navarro and Greer making a mess of their clearances, allowing Gerrard in on goal. The Reds skipper's initial effort was stopped by Brezovan, before Bridcutt deflected his second attempt over the line at the near post.

And the farcical scenes continued three minutes later with a third Brighton own-goal.

After Brezovan had missed Suarez's cross from the left, Dunk had an age in which to clear the ball. Bafflingly, he chose to juggle the ball in the six-yard box, lost control, and saw the ball trickle agonisingly over the line before he could hack it away.

Dalglish made a triple change soon after, replacing Gerrard, Henderson and Downing with Shelvey, Maxi and Kuyt, as Liverpool played out the remainder of the game in comfort.

Carroll tested Brezovan after seizing upon a Suarez interception, before Noone felled Kuyt in the box for a penalty.

The Dutchman handed responsibility to Suarez from the spot, but his kick was saved by Brezovan low to his left.

But Suarez was not to be denied, and six minutes from time he had the goal his performance merited. Enrique stood up a fine cross from the left, which Carroll nodded down at the back post for Suarez to head home from 2 yards.

LIVERPOOL (4-4-2): Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Carragher, Jose Enrique, Henderson (Kuyt 76), Gerrard (Shelvey 76), Adam, Downing (Maxi 76), Suarez, Carroll

Substitutes: Doni, Kelly, Coates, Spearing

Cards:

Goals: Skrtel (5), Bridcutt (own-goal, 44, own-goal 71), Carroll (57), Dunk (own-goal 74), Suarez (84)

BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION (4-2-3-1): Brezovan, Calderon, Greer, Dunk, El-Abd (Vicente 69), Bridcutt, Navarro, Buckley (Noone 46), Barnes, Lua-Lua, Vokes (Mackail-Smith 69)

Substitutes: Ankergren, Harley, Vincelot, Agdestein

Cards:

Goal: Lua-Lua (17)

Referee: Andre Marriner

Attendance: 43,940

Source: Liverpool Echo

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.