FA CupThe lowdown on Cardiff City
How they got here…
Like the Reds, Cardiff entered the competition at the third-round stage and were drawn against Preston North End in an all-Championship tie.
The Bluebirds had run out 2-1 winners when the sides met in the league earlier in the season and history repeated itself in the cup rematch.
Isaak Davies edged the hosts in front three minutes before the interval at Cardiff City Stadium, but Daniel Johnson’s penalty brought Preston level shortly after the restart.
Extra-time was required to separate the teams and it was Cardiff who ensured they were in the hat for the fourth round courtesy of Mark Harris’ 116th-minute winning goal.
Previous meetings…
Liverpool and Cardiff have clashed competitively on 34 previous occasions, though not in the FA Cup since a third-round showdown back in 1930, when the visitors won 2-1 at Anfield.
Their last meeting was in the rather more recent past; Jürgen Klopp’s men did the double in the 2018-19 Premier League campaign with a 4-1 home result followed by a 2-0 success in the Wales sunshine.
Ten years ago this month, they faced off at Wembley in a League Cup final that proved a nail-biter for supporters on both sides – and eventually had to be settled on penalties.
Joe Mason beat Pepe Reina to put Cardiff ahead on 19 minutes and Martin Skrtel hauled the Reds, then under Kenny Dalglish, level on the hour mark.
They thought they had won it in extra-time when Dirk Kuyt swiped in a finish from the edge of the box, only for Ben Turner to equalise two minutes from the end and force a shootout that Liverpool won 3-2.
The manager…
Steve Morison took the reins at Cardiff last October as caretaker-manager and was subsequently appointed until the end of the season.
During a senior playing career that spanned almost 20 years he represented the likes of Northampton Town, Millwall, Norwich City, Leeds United and Shrewsbury Town.
“It’s fantastic,” said Morison of the trip to Anfield. “I made one of my dreams come true going there as a player. It will be a completely different environment for me.
“If we get some face-to-face time with the [Liverpool] staff, I might make the plane wait going back!”
League form…
The Bluebirds head to L4 on the back of consecutive Championship victories over Nottingham Forest (2-1) and, in midweek, Barnsley (1-0).
They currently sit 20th in the Championship standings, with 29 points from their 28 matches – nine clear of the relegation zone.
FA Cup pedigree…
Cardiff have won the FA Cup once before, at the end of the 1926-27 season. They beat Arsenal 1-0 in the final at Wembley to become the first team to take the trophy out of England.
The Welsh side have also been runners-up on two occasions, firstly in 1925 when they lost the showpiece 1-0 to Sheffield United, and the next coming 83 years later, beaten by Portsmouth by the same scoreline.