Arsenal’s barren spell continues, Lauren James proves the difference and Marc Skinner has his eyes on the prize

Liverpool’s second win under the interim manager, Amber Whiteley, a 1-0 victory over Arsenal that saw them into the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time since 2016-2017, was one that defined “steadying the ship”. It would have been easy for the team to fold given the disruption of the last fortnight and the surprise change of manager. In Whiteley, however, they have a coach who understands the club and its players better than most and the game plan for a difficult cup tie away proved spot on. Disciplined and tireless, they shut down the spaces and pounced to create chances when the opportunity arose.