Newport vs Manchester United LIVE: FA Cup result, final score and reaction as United narrowly avoid cup upset

In reality, the Amber Army had won before a ball had been kicked, but Newport County will remember the day they took on the might of Manchester United and almost pulled off the mother of all FA Cup shocks.

Two goals down inside 13 minutes, with a star-studded Premier League giant crushing everything that lay in their path en route to the fifth round, the team 76 places below their illustrious opponents faced the prospect of their big day turning into a mauling of epic proportions.

But battling against the odds is all in a day’s work in this part of South Wales. Having seen off dodgy owners long before they became in vogue in English football, forever teetering on the brink of financial ruin, storming back to 2-2 in front of a raucous home following was nothing.

A first goal in 31 appearances for £85m Antony and a late Rasmus Hojlund goal steered a shellshocked United into the fifth round, but it was the embattled hosts, put together at a cost of one of Antony’s studs, who were the real victors.

Full-time analysis by Pete Hall from Rodney Parade:

In reality, the Amber Army had won before a ball had been kicked, but Newport County will remember the day they took on the might of Manchester United and almost pulled off the mother of all FA Cup shocks.

Two goals down inside 13 minutes, with a star-studded Premier League giant crushing everything that lay in their path en route to the fifth round, the team 76 places below their illustrious opponents faced the prospect of their big day turning into a mauling of epic proportions.

But battling against the odds is all in a day’s work in this part of South Wales. Having seen off dodgy owners long before they became in vogue in English football, forever teetering on the brink of financial ruin, storming back to 2-2 in front of a raucous home following was nothing.

A first goal in 31 appearances for £85m Antony and a late Rasmus Hojlund goal steered a shellshocked United into the fifth round, but it was the embattled hosts, put together at a cost of one of Antony’s studs, who were the real victors.

Pete Hall with the report:

United flew out of the traps at Rodney Parade, with goals from Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo putting them 2-0 up inside the first 13 minutes.

Erik ten Hag’s side could well have put the game beyond doubt in the opening salvo but spurned a number of good chances through a combination of poor finishing and bad decision-making. Antony squandered several efforts, while Alejandro Garnacho hit the crossbar from a tight angle despite having both Fernandes and Rasmus Hojlund open for what would have been a simple tap-in.

Two Premier League teams who will face a replay to be in the fifth round are Chelsea and Aston Villa – here’s chief football writer Miguel Delaney and his assessment from the Stamford Bridge stalemate.

Yet if Everton claimed they merited a free kick when the Hatters took the lead and could point out that Cauley Woodrow’s decider came 14 seconds into the 96th minute – only five had been signalled – neither grievance had much weight. Luton had more cohesion and chances, more dynamism and drive. Perhaps they had more in reserve, too, with two substitutes, Luke Berry and Woodrow, playing pivotal parts in the decider.

If Sean Dyche’s sides tend to be set-piece specialists, they were beaten at their own game. Both Luton goals came from corners, just as they had prospered from dead-ball situations when achieving their maiden Premier League win at Goodison in September.

Finally, the curse was lifted. Manchester City are a magnificent team, the rightful champions of Europe and the world, but on this rectangular patch of ground in north London they have been a mixture of unfortunate, underwhelming and comically inept. Before tonight they had played five games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and lost them all, never even scoring a goal despite accumulating an xG of about 375. For 88 minutes here history rhymed, until Nathan Ake’s bundled late winner, a game won in the most un-Cityish of ways.

Pep Guardiola had been getting increasingly irate, so much so that he was booked for sarcastically applauding referee Paul Tierney during the second half of this FA Cup tie. He would have recognised some similar traits of games that had gone before here, in which City created chance after chance but could not alter the scoreboard. An early goal was chalked off by the barest of margins; Julian Alvarez, Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku all missed prime chances.

But where Guardiola had come against stubborn defensive units in the past, deliberately designed to annoy him by Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte, this Ange Postecoglou team was never going to play that way. Tottenham tried to play their way, but they never managed to gain control and ultimately their open gameplan failed, albeit at the very last, at a corner, when so much hard work had been done. City won 1-0 and the defending champions will be in the hat for the fifth round.

Lawrence Ostlere from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium:

At Portman Road, Maidstone United pulled off one of the greatest FA Cup upsets of recent times as goals from Lamar Reynolds and Sam Corne sealed a 2-1 win over Championship promotion chasers Ipswich Town.

This has been a quiet month across the board and the Red Devils have focused on streamlining the squad rather than bolstering it.

Jadon Sancho, Donny van de Beek and Hannibal Mejbri are among those to have left on loan, with United always expected to do little to nothing in terms of signings.

And not even the fact that Martial has been ruled out until April after undergoing surgery on a groin injury is likely to change things due to Premier League profit and sustainability rules.

While Jurgen Klopp’s long goodbye has begun, the possibility is growing that the final farewell will come at Wembley. In dispatching Norwich City, in setting up a fifth-round meeting with Watford or Southampton at Anfield, Liverpool opened a path to a second domestic Cup double in three seasons. The FA Cup will not define Klopp’s reign, but it may bring it to a glorious end on 25 May.

Predictably, there were points when “I’m so glad Jurgen is a Red” echoed around Anfield. Klopp has asked fans not to sing the song devoted to him during games; in the next four months, he may have to get used to them ignoring his wishes.

And yet this was more than a mere sentimental occasion: the decibel level probably peaked as he was serenaded after the final whistle but until then, the loudest cheer may have been reserved for the sight of the returning Andy Robertson, who made his first appearance since October. It added to the sense Liverpool are gaining in strength as well as momentum. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dominik Szoboszlai made their comebacks after shorter lay-offs. Klopp hopes it will be business as usual, despite his bombshell, and Liverpool showed few signs of being distracted.

One of the German’s feats has been to turn Anfield into a fortress. They extended this season’s record to 15 wins and two draws in 17 matches on home soil, bringing up a half-century of goals. Norwich struck twice, one of them spectacular, but there was little prospect of an upset. David Wagner was Klopp’s best man but his side were unsurprisingly second best.

Read Richard Jolly’s report as Liverpool eased past Norwich into the fifth round:

To finish off for the evening, let’s take a look around the grounds at what else has happened on this superb FA Cup weekend…