Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold showed no mercy in his clash against Manchester United in the ePremier League Invitational, thrashing United 5-1 in the groundbreaking FIFA 20 tournament from the Premier League.
Singer Tom Grennan represented United in the tournament, but was powerless against Alexander-Arnold, who cruised to an emphatic victory to put the Reds in the next round of the FIFA 20 contest.
It took just 12 minutes for the Reds full-back to open the scoring in the game, with Roberto Firmino scoring a header for his first goal.
Firmino scored another early in the second-half to double the score, followed by strikes from Sadio Mane (2) and Gini Wijnaldum. Grennan did pull a goal back late on through Anthony Martial, to deny Alexander-Arnold a clean sheet, but the victory was Liverpool's.
Alexander-Arnold will face the winner of Tottenham Hotspur vs Newcastle United in the next round of the ePremier League, with Premier League stars Moussa Sissoko and Christian Atsu set to face off later today.
The Premier League first launched the ePremier League competition for the 2018/19 seasons as some of the best FIFA esports players around the UK competed to represent their favourite club, and then battled it out in a live ePremier League final at the Gfinity Arena.
But, with the ePremier League suspended in the 2019/20 season due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Premier League have decided to launch the ePremier League invitational, with professional footballers representing their teams on FIFA 20 instead.
Premier League stars will battle it out in a knockout tournament from the comfort of their own homes to find out who competes in the final, which will feature in a live show on Sky Sports on Saturday 25 April.
The prize fund will be donated to the #PlayersTogether initiative, which was created by Premier League players as a collective way of generating funds for the National Health Service and distributing them where they are needed most. The tournament will also continue to urge everyone to follow official advice by staying home and saving lives.
The full schedule for the ePremier League competition looks like this:
Preliminary round - Tuesday April 21
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John McGinn (Aston Villa) 1-6 Neal Maupay (Brighton)
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Phillip Billing (Bournemouth) 4-0 Angus Gunn (Southampton)
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Dwight McNeil (Burnley) 3-2 Ryan Fredericks (West Ham)
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Josh Franceschi (Arsenal - celebrity player) 4-3 Nathaniel Chalobah (Watford)
Last 16 - Wednesday April 22
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Raheem Sterling (Manchester City) 5-4 Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace)
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Tom Grennan (Manchester United - celebrity player) 1-5 Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
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Reece James (Chelsea) vs Andre Gomes (Everton)
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Moussa Sissoko (Tottenham) vs Christian Atsu (Newcastle)
Last 16 - Thursday April 23
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Diogo Jota (Wolves) vs James Justin (Leicester)
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Todd Cantwell (Norwich) vs Lys Mousset (Sheffield United)
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John McGinn (Aston Villa) or Neal Maupay (Brighton) vs Phillip Billing (Bournemouth) or Angus Gunn (Southampton)
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Josh Franceschi (Arsenal) or Nathaniel Chalobah (Watford) vs Dwight McNeil (Burnley) or Ryan Fredericks (West Ham)
Friday April 24 - Four ePL matches played between 12pm and 4pm
Trent Alexander-Arnold v Moussa Sissoko/Christian Atsu
Reece James/Andre Gomes v Raheem Sterling
Diogo Jota/Wilfred Ndidi v Todd Cantwell/Lys Mousset
Neal Maupay/Philip Billing v Josh Franceschi/Dwight McNeil
Saturday April 25 - Semi-final and final from 3pm
Winner QF1 v Winner QF2
Winner QF3 v Winner QF4
Winner SF1 v Winner SF2
Fans can watch all the action throughout the week on the Premier League website, app, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter channels; Sky Sports YouTube and Twitch channels as well on the Football Daily YouTube channel. Sky’s coverage will be hosted by Saturday Social’s Adam Smith and Joe Thomlinson who will be joined by influencer Harry Pinero.
