Brighton beat Liverpool to progress to the fifth-round of the FA Cup thanks to a late winner from Kaoru Mitoma.

Harvey Elliott had given the Reds the lead with a composed finish from a well-worked move on the half-hour mark. 

However, that lead lasted just nine minutes, Tariq Lamptey’s long range effort was deflected past Alisson by Lewis Dunk.

VAR had a very controversial afternoon too, with the visitors lucky to still have 11 men on the pitch at the final whistle. 

Here are the key takeaways from the match. 

  • Seagulls survive without Caicedo 

Brighton were rocked this week when Moises Caicedo expressed his desire to leave the club after a £60 million bid from Arsenal was rejected.

As a result, he has been told not to come back to training until the transfer window is over, with owner Tony Bloom insistent that the player will remain at the AMEX Stadium. 

They clearly missed Caicedo’s presence in the centre of the pitch, with Mohamed Salah  carving through their defence to set up Elliott. 

However, a composed second-half display limited the amount of chances that the visitors could create and allowed the hosts to find a winner when a replay was looking likely. 

  • Mitoma makes his mark

The Japanese attacker was a threat throughout the contest, threatening the visitors goal several times.

His sublime trivela cross found Solly March, who forced a brilliant save from Alisson at close range before the ball bounced back against March and wide of the post. 

He was rewarded for his persistence in the dying embers of the match, when he took the ball down from a Pervis Estupinian cross, slipped past Joe Gomez and smashed the ball home to the delight of the home crowd.

If Caicedo does command a record fee for the club, Mitoma may very well eclipse it when he decides it is time to move on to higher things.

  • Elliott excels again

Sometimes it is hard to remember that the former Fulham starlet is just 19-years-old. 

He continued his magical form in the FA Cup, with the opening goal, following on from his stunning winner in the replay against Wolves. 

Having started on the left, Elliott thrived in central areas and it is abundantly clear that he is not a left winger. 

His goal was an example of this success through the centre of the pitch, as he picked up the ball from Salah and slotted it past Jason Steele. 
 

It is clear that he is growing in confidence and willing to take on the creative burden for the Reds.


His game intelligence and decision making is improving, and his quick thinking when knocking to ball out Roberto De Zerbi’s hands to delay the restart and allow his team to regroup, was a clear sign of this. 
 

  • Klopp’s subs fail to make desired impact

Jurgen Klopp attempted to freshen up his team on the hour mark, however it may have been a mistake. 

The introduction of Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Darwin Nunez to replace Naby Keita, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Darwin Nunez were alleged to be pre-planned for fitness reasons but Liverpool lost their intensity once those changes were made. 

Alexander-Arnold was visibly frustrated with his withdrawal, and it was justified as he had defended relatively well against Mitoma, and the Reds were still looking for a winner. 

The substitutions of Stefan Bajcetic and Thiago Alcantara for Fabinho and Curtis Jones further drained the energy out of the visitors somehow. 
 

This game may have confirmed a changing of the guard in midfield. The combination of Bajcetic, Thiago and Keita should be the first choice midfield going forward. 

The trio gave the visitors control of the contest, and an intensity that they have been lacking so far this season. 
 

  • VAR has a nightmare
     

Liverpool were lucky not to have two men sent off in this contest.

Ibrahima Konate was already on a booking when his arm connected with Alexis Mac Allister on the edge of the box.

Whilst they could not check for a penalty as it was outside of the area, it could have been checked for denial of a goalscoring opportunity and therefore a red card.

If Konate was fortunate to stay on the pitch, then Fabinho must have a guardian angel watching over him.

His challenge on Evan Ferguson was horrendous, and judging by the look on the Brazilian’s face when the camera panned to him, he knew it and was expecting to be dismissed.
 

Studs to the Achilles, it was unpleasant viewing to put it lightly, and the 18-year-old was forced off after the lunging challenge.

VAR had a nightmare, on the eve of the reason for why decisions are made being announced to fans, it was a shocking showing from the officials.