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Dominik Szoboszlai looked set to steal the headlines after scoring a stunning goal before gifting one away, but the Reds finished strongly.

Barnsley gave its host a scare after just 28 seconds when Davis Keillor-Dunn thumped a header against the right post.

But Liverpool took the lead nine minutes in after Szoboszlai was left unmarked and lifted a spectacular long-range strike into the back of the net.

Jonathan Bland forced Giorgi Mamardashvili into a smart stop shortly before Jeremie Frimpong cut inside from the right to curl a brilliant strike into the roof of the net 36 minutes in.

However, just four minutes later, a Szoboszlai mistake gifted Barnsley a route back into the game; after tracking back to intercept a throughball, he inexplicably attempted to backheel the ball to Mamardashvili, only to gift Adam Phillips a close-range tap-in.

Liverpool upped the pressure after the break, but Barnsley felt it should have had a penalty after Szoboszlai appeared to clip Reyes Cleary in the box, but it was waved away.

Wirtz then blazed over at the other end but made amends 84 minutes in, bending in a lovely strike past Murphy Cooper, before teeing up Ekitike for a first-time finish in the fourth minute of stoppage-time.

Liverpool will meet Brighton and Hove Albion in the fourth round after the draw was conducted earlier in the day.

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Reds boss Arne Slot was delighted that Liverpool was able to secure its place in the fourth round, but admitted their win was a bit too close for comfort.

"I was happy with the goals we scored – they were nice goals," he said.

"But I think it was a game that was tight for far too long because, at 2-0, and then giving a goal away like that made it difficult until 5-10 minutes before the end.

"So yeah, good goals but not enough chances from all the ball possession we had.

"If you come in for half an hour, and you have a goal and an assist and a few other good moments, you can definitely say he [Wirtz] brought something creative to the team and that we needed."

Szoboszlai became the first Liverpool player to score and make an error leading to a goal in a match since Alexis Mac Allister against Tottenham in December 2024.

"I don't think you should do that in an FA Cup game or League Cup, a friendly game or even a training session," Slot said of Szoboszlai's mistake.

"It's a weird choice, and I also have my opinion about it, but I prefer to keep that to myself and speak about that with Dom."

"Sorry to the team again – I made it hard for us," Szoboszlai said. "It was an easy mistake, I would say. Football happens, and we move on.

"We wanted to show that we take the FA Cup seriously. We always take it seriously. We showed again, we need the whole squad.

"The new guys came in, who didn't play as much as the others, and they showed lots of quality. We need everyone."