Manchester City easily advanced to the FA Cup semi-finals with a 4-0 devastating victory over Liverpool at the Etihad. Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick, while Antoine Semenyo also scored, helping Pep Guardiola's team win tickets to the semi-finals for the eighth consecutive season - an unprecedented record.
All of City's goals came during the explosive period lasting 18 minutes before and after halftime.
A forgettable match day for Liverpool is clearly shown through Mohamed Salah's performance - in the first match since announcing his departure from Anfield in the summer. The Egyptian striker missed two clear chances, before witnessing a penalty save by James Trafford.
This victory is a perfect warm-up for Man City before a series of important Premier League matches against Chelsea and Arsenal in the next two weeks.
Meanwhile, Liverpool is forced to quickly recover their spirits before the difficult away match to Paris Saint-Germain's stadium in the Champions League in the middle of the week.
Haaland has shown a familiar sharp image
The difficulties of the Norwegian striker from the beginning of the year are easily noticeable. He was even given special priority by national team coach Stale Solbakken when he was only used in one of two international matches.
However, the recent performance showed that the break was effective. After confidently converting the penalty to open the score, Haaland continued to shine with the second goal from a header past Ibrahima Konate. He completed a hat-trick after the break - the first hat-trick for Man City since August 2024.
The second goal is in the style of Haaland - a type of goal that was once his specialty, but rarely appeared since December last year. This is an extremely positive sign for Man City. Being eliminated from the Champions League by Real Madrid unintentionally makes the schedule lighter, creating conditions for Haaland to have more time to recover.
If Haaland finds his peak form like before Christmas, Man City can completely aim to add the FA Cup and the Premier League title to their collection of titles, after winning the Carabao Cup by winning against Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola breaks historic milestone at FA Cup lasting nearly 150 years
The Spanish strategist once affirmed that he wanted to hold all records before leaving Man City, and he has just added another incredible mark.
Guardiola's team has won 18 consecutive home matches in the FA Cup, officially surpassing the record that has existed for nearly a century and a half.
Previously, Clapham Rovers had a 17-match home win streak in the cup arena from December 1873 to February 1881. This is an ancient record to the point that this team even dissolved in 1914, when World War I broke out.
The victory over Liverpool also helped Man City reach the semi-finals for the eighth consecutive time, breaking the seven-time consecutive record set by themselves before that. Not only that, Guardiola's team still maintains an unbeaten record away from home in the FA Cup since the defeat to Wigan Athletic in 2018.
Just one more victory, Man City will become the first team in history to reach 4 consecutive FA Cup finals. With 5 Carabao Cup titles won, Guardiola's achievements in domestic cup tournaments are extremely impressive.
Another trip to Wembley is waiting for Man City, along with the opportunity to continue writing history.
