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Liverpool’s pursuit of the FA Cup came to an abrupt halt on Sunday as they were knocked out of the competition by second-tier Plymouth Argyle in a stunning 1-0 defeat.

The match, played at Plymouth’s Home Park, saw Ryan Hardie score the decisive goal from the penalty spot in the 53rd minute after a handball by Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott.

Arne Slot opted to make plenty of chances to his starting line-up with the rotated squad ultimately failing to impress.

But the decision to leave so many senior players out will be vindicated if Liverpool beat Everton on Wednesday evening.

Despite Liverpool’s late attempts to equalize, Plymouth goalkeeper Conor Hazard made crucial saves to secure the clean sheet and ensure his team’s progression to the fifth round of the FA Cup.

And according to Arne Slot, the plan was not to have quite so many youngsters on the pitch against Plymouth.

Arne Slot confirms injury concern

Arne Slot confirmed that Curtis Jones told him hours before the clash that he was still on the mend following his own return from a knee injury.

Jones previously revealed that he was dealing with an MCL injury – the same one that caused him to off at half-time during the victory over Lille.

Speaking to reporters after the game, the Dutchman said:

“That was a bit of a blow because Curtis Jones was on the bench, but he came to me this morning and said, ‘I don’t think I am fully recovered yet’ as well after the training session of yesterday.”

“That all of a sudden led to the fact we were with a few more youngsters on the pitch than was the idea before the game, but still there was enough quality on the pitch to get a better result than this.”

An MCL (Medial Collateral Ligament) injury is damage to one of the four main ligaments in your knee.

This leaves Jones as a doubt for the upcoming Merseyside Derby on Wednesday evening – a chance for Liverpool to go nine points clear at the top of the table.

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