Liverpool kept alive hopes of an unprecedented quadruple as Konstantinos Tsimikas struck a sudden-death penalty winner to earn victory over Chelsea in the FA Cup final.
In scenes similar to the Carabao Cup final earlier in the campaign when the Reds edged a shootout win, the sides again could not be separated in a goalless 120 minutes of play that saw countless wasted openings.
They split 27 shots on the day – 17 for Liverpool and 10 for Chelsea – and both sides saw efforts hit the woodwork before an extra-time period played in a manner that made penalties feel inevitable.
And when they came, Cesar Azpilicueta’s early miss handed Liverpool the initiative, only for Sadio Mane to see the potentially match-winning penalty saved, prompting Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel to drop to his knees and beat the Wembley turf in celebration.
Mason Mount saw Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson superbly save Chelsea’s second sudden-death effort, allowing Tsimikas to side-foot home and spark scenes of wild celebration in a season Reds’ fans will find hard to forget.
