‘Very important moment’
United progressed to the FA Cup semi-finals thanks to a surprise victory over their arch-rivals on Sunday afternoon, edging a seven-goal thriller at Old Trafford.
Scott McTominay put the Red Devils one up, before favourites Liverpool turned it around with two goals in three minutes before half-time through Alexis Mac Allister and Mo Salah.
Jurgen Klopp’s men looked relatively comfortable in their march towards Wembley – which was just one part of a potential quadruple, having already won the Carabao Cup while hunting down glory in the Premier League and Europa League.
But Antony equalised to send the tie to extra-time, in which Harvey Elliott again gave Liverpool the lead, only for Marcus Rashford to make it 3-3 and then Diallo to snatch the win on the break.
The 21-year-old caught Elliott in possession in the United half, before Alejandro Garnacho raced down and returned it to Diallo in a two-on-one situation. He took one touch to set himself on the edge of the area, and another to slot it past Caoimhin Kelleher in the 121st minute.
The finish lifted off what is left of the Old Trafford roof, capping off an incredible game that will live long in the memory. Diallo was the man to down a rampant Liverpool team which had beaten United 7-0, 5-0 and 4-0 within the last three seasons.
Reflecting on his spectacular moment – which was followed by a sending off due to a second yellow card for taking his shirt off in the celebrations – the Ivory Coast international told ITV: “What a game. We deserved this win.
“It was one of the best games of the season. It was a very important moment. It was the best goal of my career. You need to believe every single moment. I’m very happy.
“I forgot the first yellow, so I’m disappointed for the red card. But the most important thing is to win against a big team like Liverpool.”
The former Atalanta forward went on to tell MUTV: “I was last season at Sunderland [on loan] and my dream was to play for Manchester United. So I am here to dream every moment. Every moment is like a dream.
“For United, every game is a Champions League final. Every team wants to beat Manchester United so United need to win every game. So if you want to win every game, you need to play like [it is the] Champions League final.
“I think today we see what Manchester United are doing on the pitch. I think we deserve that win.”
Diallo, who netted 13 goals in 37 Championship games last term, has played in just a pair of Premier League and pair of FA Cup games this time around.
Though his stock is now high, he’ll be unavailable through suspension for United’s next game, a trip to Brentford on March 30.
Erik Ten Hag’s men will take on second-tier Coventry City in the final four of the FA Cup next month. If they progress, a repeat of either last season’s final against Manchester City or the 2018 showpiece against Chelsea awaits.
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