Havant & Waterlooville twice took the lead at Anfield before losing 5-2 to Liverpool, Preston North End thrashed Derby County and Arsenal beat Newcastle United in the FA Cup fourth round.
Non-league side Havant were expected to be cannon-fodder for their Premier League opponents, but provided the Reds with several scares before Yossi Benayoun's hat-trick spared his side's blushes.
Preston may be waging a battle to to stay in the Championship, but shrugged off those troubles to win 4-1 at Pride Park.
Middlesbrough avoided an upset at Mansfield Town in the early kick-off, while Bristol Rovers and Coventry City both saw off lower league opposition.
Arsene Wenger's side brushed off a disjointed first-half display to eventually emerge comfortable winners at Emirates Stadium. Arsenal took the lead on 51 minutes when Newcastle failed to clear the loose ball after Eduardo da Silva's shot came back off the post, with Emmanuel Adebayor guiding his shot beyond Shay Given. Adebayor notched the Gunners' second goal on 83 minutes, skipping past a couple of challenges before firing a low shot past Given, which Steven Taylor was unable to keep out on the line. Arsenal rubbed salt into the wounds late on with a third goal as Cesc Fabregas' free-kick was headed past his own keeper by Nicky Butt.
Barnet failed to claim the scalp of another League One side after suffering a narrow defeat at Underhill. Barnet were gifted an opportunity to take the lead after just two minutes when Danny Coles was penalised for handball, but Jason Puncheon's penalty was saved by Rovers keeper Steve Phillips. Rovers, who beat Fulham on penalties in midweek, grabbed the only goal four minutes into the second half through Rickie Lambert.
Coventry advanced to the fifth round of the competition after a battling win over League One Millwall. Lewis Grabban and Paul Robinson both saw headers cleared off the line for the Lions before Coventry took the lead on 16 minutes. Michael Doyle touched a free-kick to Stephen Hughes and his low drive nestled in the bottom corner. Millwall were level three minutes before half-time when Jay Simpson finished smartly after controlling Scott Barron's cross. But the Sky Blues were back in front seven minutes into the second half when Michael Mifsud scored from close range after Elliott Ward's shot bounced into his path.
Top-flight strugglers Derby saw their season take a further turn for the worse after a heavy home defeat. Preston pounced on a woeful first-half showing from Derby to score three times before the interval, with Karl Hawley breaking the deadlock on 14 minutes with a composed finish after Chris Brown had latched on to an Andy Todd error. Darren Carter's clever pass released Simon Whaley to score the second goal on 33 minutes and on the stroke of half-time Brown set up Hawley to curl a low shot inside the post from the edge of the box. Derby pulled one back 10 minutes into the second half when substitute Robert Earnshaw finished confidently after being sent clear by Kenny Miller. In the final minute, Rams defender Lewin Nyatanga was sent off for bringing down Neil Mellor in the box and the striker got up to convert the penalty.
The non-league side rocked Anfield by taking the lead after just eight minutes when the unmarked Richard Pacquette nodded home Mo Harkin's corner. Liverpool huffed and puffed before equalising on 27 minutes through Lucas Leiva's stunning goal into the top corner from 25 yards. Yet Havant did not buckle and went back in front four minutes later when Alfie Potter's shot took a deflection off Martin Skrtel on its way past Reds keeper Charles Itandje. Liverpool equalised again a minute before half-time through Yossi Benayoun's clever finish after he was picked out by Jermaine Pennant inside the box. And the same players combined to put Liverpool ahead for the first time on 56 minutes with Pennant clipping in a cross which Benayoun controlled before firing a shot high into the net, and three minutes later the Israeli completed his hat-trick when pouncing on the loose ball after Ryan Babel's shot had been parried. In the last minute, Liverpool added a fifth goal when Peter Crouch tapped in from close range, despite looking suspiciously offside.
Boro survived the odd hairy moment at Field Mill before securing a place in the fifth round of the competition. Lee Dong-gook gave Boro a 17th minute lead from close range after Mansfield failed to deal with a corner from the right-hand side. Michael Boulding thundered a shot against the crossbar before half-time, only for Boro to wrap the game up three minutes from time when Jake Buxton headed George Boateng's cross into his own net
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