Manchester City demolished Liverpool 4-0 on Saturday to reach the FA Cup semifinals for the eighth time in a row. Erling Haaland was the star of the show, scoring his first hat-trick of the season.
Haaland bagged a penalty late in the first half, and followed it with a perfect header. Antoine Semenyo made it 3-0 early in the second half before Haaland struck again to bag the much awaited hat-trick. City’s game got even more exciting after James Trafford saved Mohamed Salah’s penalty. It would be a terrible send-off for the Egyptian, who will be leaving Anfield at the end of the season.
“Amazing. In the first half we struggled a bit but we kept going after 30 minutes. Amazing, another Wembley trip for us which is important,” Haaland said to TNT Sports after the game.
“Between 30 minutes and 60 that is on one of our better performances [of the season],” he added
On his hat-trick, Haaland said: “It’s been some time since I have done it for City so it is time I have done it again! It is special so I am super happy.”
Asked about his season with Man City, he said: “It has been too up and down which has not been good enough. For now it is a long week for us because we are not in the Champions League, which is not good enough, but we have to face Chelsea which is another game.”
Saturday’s match saw Haaland score his 12th hat-trick for City, equaling Sergio Aguero’s record for most hat-tricks for the club. Meanwhile, City is the first team ever to reach eight FA Cup semifinals in a row.
