Erling Haaland made a comical jab at his former RB Salzburg teammate, Dominik Szoboszlai, during Liverpool’s third-round FA Cup victory over League One Barnsley.
On Monday (12 January), Arne Slots Liverpool progressed to the fourth round of the world’s oldest cup competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over the Yorkshire club at Anfield. Szoboszlai opened the scoring for the evening with a long-range shot in the ninth minute before Jeremie Frimpong doubled the Reds’ lead after 36 minutes.
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However, the away side got a glimmer of hope after 40 minutes when Adam Phillips tapped in after Szoboszlai’s mistake as the midfielder tried to play the ball over his own goal.
After the game, Barnsley boss Conor Hourihane described the Hungarian’s attempt to knock the ball backwards as “disrespectful”, before Slot even called it “strange”.
“I was disappointed with our goal because he [Szoboszlai] doesn’t do that against Chelsea or Arsenal,” Hourihane told TNT Sports.
When asked if he thought the back heel was disrespectful, the Irishman added: “Yes, potentially. I don’t think he does that in a Premier League game or in a Champions League game, so I was a bit disappointed about that. There was a bit of a lack of respect.
“Happy for Adam, but disrespectful from the player’s point of view.”
In the second half, late goals from Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike ensured Liverpool’s progress and maintained their current streak of 11 games in all competitions without defeat.
And on a mixed night for Szoboszlai, even his former RB Salzburg teammate and current Manchester City striker, Haaland, made a joke at the 25-year-old’s expense.
In a Snapchat story, the Norwegian international took a picture of his TV, where he was watching the Liverpool game, and added: “Domi, what a goal, smile a little.”
Haaland and Szoboszlai played together 19 times during their time at RB Salzburg, and they still have a close friendship despite playing for rival Premier League clubs.
The Premier League champions face other top division opponents in the fourth round, as they were drawn against Brighton, who beat Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday, January 11.
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Liverpool are back in Premier League action at Anfield on Saturday 17 January, where they face relegation-threatened Burnley.
