Reds gets lucky break, Reading into FA Cup semis
Print Edition
A HUGE slice of fortune kept Liverpool in the hunt for Champions League qualification on Monday, while second-tier Reading reached its first FA Cup semifinal since 1927 by ending Bradford City’s surprise run in the competition.
Jordan Henderson scored a fluke goal in the 68th minute to earn Liverpool a 1-0 victory over Swansea City in the Premier League, with a covering clearance slamming into the right shin of the England midfielder and looping over the goalkeeper from the edge of the box.
“I got a little bit fortunate with the finish,” Henderson said, “but you have to be in the right position to score.”
Liverpool extended its unbeaten run in the league to 13 games — stretching back to December 14 — and stayed only two points behind fourth-place Manchester United, which occupies the final Champions League qualifying spot. The two fierce rivals meet at Anfield on Sunday.
Third-tier Bradford had already beaten Premier League sides Chelsea and Sunderland en route to the FA Cup quarterfinals, but came unstuck at Reading in a 0-3 loss.
Reading scored twice in the opening nine minutes, through Hal Robson-Kanu and Garath McCleary, and Jamie Mackie added a third in the 68th after Bradford midfielder Filipe Morais was sent off for a dangerous challenge.
The match was marred by allegations of racial abuse from a fan toward McCleary, as the Jamaica international went to collect the ball for a corner. Reading said in a statement that the matter was passed onto a police after it was reported to match officials, and that “a man was then arrested and ejected during the halftime interval”.
Reading, which is in mid-table in the League Championship and managed by former Chelsea and Liverpool assistant coach Steve Clarke, will play titleholder Arsenal in the semifinals at Wembley Stadium on April 18 or 19. It will be the first time Reading has played a top-division team in this season’s competition. The other semifinal sees Aston Villa facing either Liverpool or Blackburn Rovers, who will play a replay after drawing their quarterfinal 0-0 at Anfield last weekend.
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