Liverpool manager Arne Slot has vowed to sit down with Dominik Szoboszlai following his shocking blunder against Barnsley on Monday night at Anfield. The Hungarian midfielder experienced contrasting fortunes during the third-round FA Cup clash. He opened the scoring with a stunning strike – his sixth goal of the campaign – before Jeremie Frimpong extended Liverpool’s advantage with an equally impressive effort.
However, Szoboszlai’s night took a turn for the worse when he committed an inexplicable mistake mere yards from his own goal, attempting a bizarre backheel that went horribly awry. Adam Phillips capitalised on the error to pull one back for the visitors. Liverpool eventually won 4-1 thanks to late strikes from Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike. Despite the victory, Slot was frustrated with his midfielder’s lapse in concentration, particularly after Barnsley manager Conor Hourihane branded the incident ‘disrespectful’.
Speaking to TNT Sports post-match, Slot responded: “What does he mean disrespectful? I don’t think you should do that in a Premier League game, League Cup game, friendly game or a training session. It’s a weird choice and I also have my opinion about it but I prefer to keep that to myself and speak about it with Dom.”
For his part, Szoboszlai offered an apologetic response to his colleagues after the final whistle, saying: “Sorry for the team again, I made it hard for us with an easy mistake I would say but football happens. We move on and take the next round.”
Szoboszlai, on the other hand, was thrilled with his long-range goal, adding to his impressive collection. The midfielder shared: “Yeah finally I got in my position and I didn’t really think much. If I have a chance to shoot so I just take the chance and shot it and finally hit the goal so good.”
When questioned about whether Szoboszlai’s attempted backheel was ‘disrespectful’, Hourihane responded: “I was a little bit disappointed with our goal. I don’t think a player does that against Chelsea, against Arsenal or in a Champions League game. I’m a little bit disappointed with that to be honest. I thought my lads were top.”
He added: “Yeah, potentially [it was disrespectful]. He doesn’t do that against Arsenal, Chelsea or a Champions League game. He doesn’t do that.”
Liverpool’s victory sets up a fourth-round showdown with Premier League rivals Brighton at Anfield in mid-February.