Wolves 1-3 Liverpool: Reds relieve the pressure on Arne Slot with clinical, comfortable FA Cup victory to banish ghosts of disastrous league defeat at Molineux just three days ago, writes DOMINIC KING

After the sorry performance came the apology. If Liverpool’s first visit of the week to the Black Country left them in darkness, the second – eventually – brought some light.

While there is no sense in getting carried away about a comfortable win at Molineux, one that has carried Liverpool into the FA Cup quarter-finals for just the third time in 11 years, the relief of not losing to Wolverhampton twice in 72 hours was palpable for all in Red.

Arne Slot hasn’t had a surfeit of comfortable evenings in this lopsided campaign but how this was welcome, as Liverpool flattened inferior opponents in the clinical, professional manner the teamsheet suggested they would.

How Slot would have been thankful, though, to a man who, six weeks ago, looked like his days as a Liverpool player were over: Andrew Robertson has struggled with his lack of minutes this season, so much so that he was prepared to join Tottenham in January, but he made up for it here.

Robertson is a keen golfer and the left-footed shot he dispatched in the 52nd minute was struck with the purity of a drive that fizzes out the middle of a club and bounds down a fairway: there looked to be some anger behind it and his wide-eyed stare, as others celebrated, spoke volumes.

He was instrumental in the decisive second goal, too, drawing a ball across the face of the six-yard box that Mohamed Salah cracked into the roof of the net – quite why a 90 second delay was required from VAR to determine its legitimacy can only be surmised but at least they got the decision right.

Robertson has struggled with a lack of minutes this season and there seemed to be some anger behind the strike

The full back quickly turned provider for Mohamed Salah to double Liverpool’s advantage

As did Liverpool. Losing once at this stadium was careless in the extreme, to lose twice in such short proximity would have been a calamity but on they march, trundling forward in the competition that offers their most realistic chance of success. You suspect, quietly, they will fancy it, too.

When they play as they did in the second period, when the passes ping and the interchanging is like the cogs of a clock, you wonder why it has been such a difficult watch at times but then you think of what happened on Tuesday – and in the opening 45 minutes – and it all becomes apparent.

Back at the scene of the crime, there was never any doubt that Liverpool were going to be reminded of what happened and the persistent chanting of “2-1 to the Championship!” from Molineux’s South Bank was nothing more than salt being rubbed into wounds.

There had, inevitably, been much talk about this being a perfect fixture for Liverpool to get that experience out of their system but what was it based on? For so much of this campaign, the team has been like an out of frequency radio, occasionally sounding right but so often jumpy.

Wolves, absolutely, had it within them to capitalise. Nothing about how they have played since Rob Edwards has arrived would make you think they were the worst team in the Premier League and, in so many ways, this was a free hit for them. What did they have to lose?

Quickly, though, it became apparent this wouldn’t be a free-flowing dust up. Wolves were intent on doing as they had done three days earlier – a narrow block, in three clear lines, limiting space – and Liverpool don’t have the options out wide to stretch opponents.

The more you watch, the more you wonder why they didn’t push harder to be in the conversation for Antoine Semenyo. Yes, Liverpool have their policy and structure and Semenyo, at 26, isn’t in their ideal profile age bracket for a target but he would have been an ideal signing.

None of this mattered here. Liverpool had to find a way through and Slot, after much clamour, gave Rio Ngumoha the start many wanted to see and it was he, after a jinking run and a step inside, who had the first shot of the game in the 10th minute, one beaten away by Sam Johnstone.

Curtis Jones added a third for Liverpool to help them banish the demons of losing to Wolves in midweek

Salah has now scored in successive matches, while the victory eased pressure on Slot

Hwang Hee-Chan grabbed a consolation goal for Wolves in stoppage time at Molineux

Ngumoha, with his youth and vibrancy, finds a crackle accompanying his every move on a pitch. Things seem to happen when he is introduced from the bench and he has the trait all defenders hate, a stepover followed by a dart to the left or the right.

He would grow into the game and it was fitting that he would start the five man move, after the break, that saw Cody Gakpo find Salah, who in turn ushered the ball onto Curtis Jones before teeing up Robertson for a good, old thwack. It was a goal from the moment it left his boot.

With their confidence up, Liverpool went hunting for more. Again Ngumoha invited Robertson to overlap, he saw an old pal at the back post and now Salah has two goals in his last two games and you wonder if the flood gates have opened for him.

Perhaps we will only truly get a reflection of that when Liverpool travel to Galatasaray next week for the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie but at least they go there with their tails up, the gloss being provided by a fine finish from Jones only for Hwang Hee-Chan to grab a late consolation.

It was the same end, almost at the same time, as Andre’s killer blow on Tuesday but this didn’t have any implication. For that Slot can be thankful.