Liverpool's win over Barnsley was as much about Szoboszlai salvaging his team's blushes rather than the Hungarian midfielder's display itself.
Barnsley, despite a spirited start under their head coach Conor Hourihane, struggled to contain Liverpool's midfield dynamo Dominik Szoboszlai. The Hungary captain opened the scoring with a brilliant long-range strike that hinted at the quality in his arsenal.
However, it was Szoboszlai who handed Barnsley back into the tie with a comical error that let Adam Phillips net an equaliser. The Liverpool-born striker's goal sent the Kop into raptures and gave the Reds a 2-1 lead before Jeremie Frimpong sealed the win with another fine strike.
As the match wore on, however, it became increasingly clear that Szoboszlai was in trouble for his showboating antics. His error had gifted Barnsley their equaliser, while a similarly reckless challenge on Reyes Cleary led to the visitors' dismissal from the tie.
Despite a spirited fightback, Liverpool's head coach Jurgen Slot ultimately praised Szoboszlai for scoring the opening goal and claimed that the midfielder was not out of line to celebrate with his teammates. However, Slot also noted that Szoboszlai took unnecessary risks, stating, "I don't think you should do that in an FA Cup game or League Cup, a friendly game or even a training session. It's a weird choice."
Despite Szoboszlai's mishap, Liverpool dominated the tie and were grateful for late goals from Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitiké to secure a comfortable victory. The win was made all the more sweet by Wirtz's stunning strike in the 90th minute that banished any late nerves.
For Szoboszlai, however, it was relief at getting his team out of trouble rather than individual glory. His display had raised eyebrows throughout the match and, ultimately, it was a costly error that saved him from further criticism.
Barnsley, despite a spirited start under their head coach Conor Hourihane, struggled to contain Liverpool's midfield dynamo Dominik Szoboszlai. The Hungary captain opened the scoring with a brilliant long-range strike that hinted at the quality in his arsenal.
However, it was Szoboszlai who handed Barnsley back into the tie with a comical error that let Adam Phillips net an equaliser. The Liverpool-born striker's goal sent the Kop into raptures and gave the Reds a 2-1 lead before Jeremie Frimpong sealed the win with another fine strike.
As the match wore on, however, it became increasingly clear that Szoboszlai was in trouble for his showboating antics. His error had gifted Barnsley their equaliser, while a similarly reckless challenge on Reyes Cleary led to the visitors' dismissal from the tie.
Despite a spirited fightback, Liverpool's head coach Jurgen Slot ultimately praised Szoboszlai for scoring the opening goal and claimed that the midfielder was not out of line to celebrate with his teammates. However, Slot also noted that Szoboszlai took unnecessary risks, stating, "I don't think you should do that in an FA Cup game or League Cup, a friendly game or even a training session. It's a weird choice."
Despite Szoboszlai's mishap, Liverpool dominated the tie and were grateful for late goals from Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitiké to secure a comfortable victory. The win was made all the more sweet by Wirtz's stunning strike in the 90th minute that banished any late nerves.
For Szoboszlai, however, it was relief at getting his team out of trouble rather than individual glory. His display had raised eyebrows throughout the match and, ultimately, it was a costly error that saved him from further criticism.
! I mean, he's got some serious skills on the pitch, right? That long-range strike was insane! 
And yeah, his showboating antics did cost his team a goal... which is pretty major in an FA Cup game. But you can't blame him for celebrating with his teammates - that's just what players do when they score goals! 
It's all part of the excitement of watching football, right? So let's not be too harsh on Szoboszlai... he's still a superstar player in my eyes 
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Liverpool deserved that win, but Szoboszlai's antics are just mind-boggling! 
I mean, who does that in an FA Cup game?! 
The guy scores a beautiful opening goal, then proceeds to gift Barnsley the equaliser with that comical error. And don't even get me started on those reckless challenges! 
He's got some serious nerve, celebrating with his teammates after scoring, like he's trying to rub it in their faces! 
I mean, Jurgen Slot praises Szoboszlai for scoring the opener, but then bemoans those unnecessary risks. What exactly is he supposed to do, sit on the bench and hold his team's hands?! 
It's all about confidence and leadership, and from what I've seen, Szoboszlai just can't seem to get it right.
Still, I'm not buying the 'just a minor mistake' narrative. This guy needs to work on his maturity and discipline if he wants to take his game to the next level! 
I mean, can't say I'm surprised by Szoboszlai's antics on the pitch... like, who doesn't love a good show-off 
? But seriously, it's kinda impressive how quickly he salvaged his team's blushes after that goal... guess you could say he's got some serious 'midas touch' 
. On the other hand, I'm not sure what was more cringeworthy - his celebratory dance or the fact that his teammates were actually cheering him on for all the wrong reasons 
and i'm not even mad about it!!! his showboating antics had me dying tho 
especially that reckless challenge on cleary 
szoboszlai scored some great goals and that's all that matters maybe next time he can balance being confident with not being reckless 
but szoboszlai needs to work on his decision making 
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. I mean, the goal was sick, but that error was straight up comedy 
. And yeah, Jürgen Slot was right – that reckless challenge was a no-go 
. Still, he's Liverpool's captain for a reason, so I'm glad he saved their blushes 
... the fact that he took a penalty and gave away the equaliser was so sloppy 
. The guy got lucky with the opening goal, but other than that, his display wasn't exactly impressive 
... he needs to work on his game management skills or get taken off by Slot ASAP 
i mean we love the dude but c'mon boy! showboating in cup games is just not cool 
but for real, wirtz's 90th min winner was pure magic 
! I mean, who needs to celebrate with teammates when you're playing an FA Cup game? 
I guess it's one of those things where he wants to be a hero on the pitch, but not so much in his own team's favor 
! Now, can't wait to see what Jurgen Slot has in store for him next 
. I mean, come on, he scored 2 goals for Liverpool! The guy's just trying to have fun and celebrate with his teammates, but Slota's all like "don't do that in a training session" 
. And let's be real, the goal he scored at the start of the game was pretty awesome 
. I think Slota needs to chill out and give Domi some credit for his effort 
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. The kid's got talent for sure, but you can't just go around taking unnecessary risks in big games 
12 goals in his last 15 appearances for Liverpool is 
. His error that led to Adam Phillips' equalizer was just plain silly 
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Did you know Liverpool's midfield has been averaging 65% possession per game this season? It's no wonder they dominated against Barnsley! 
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. anywayz, 3-1 win for the reds, so not complaining