EXETER, England — Brad Smith scored for Liverpool in the 73rd minute as the English Premier League side twice hit back to draw 2-2 with fourth-tier Exeter in the FA Cup Friday.
Liverpool has never lost to fourth-tier opposition but it was just 17 minutes away from making unwanted history.
Tom Nichols put Exeter ahead in the ninth minute and despite Jerome Sinclair’s equalizer three minutes later, the host retook the lead on half-time through Lee Holmes. Smith then got the second equalizer for Juergen Klopp’s side.
Klopp selected a side that had 17 changes from the League Cup semifinal victory at Stoke Tuesday against a side 76 places beneath them.
Exeter went ahead when Nichols stretched for a low pass across goal from Jamie Reid and poked the ball into the bottom corner.
Liverpool was level three minutes later when Exeter did not clear the ball and Sinclair steered it low past goalkeeper Robert Olejnik.
Christian Ribeiro headed wide when unmarked for Exeter who retook the lead on halftime when Holmes scored direct from a corner after Liverpool goalkeeper Adam Bogdan misjudged the flight of the ball.
Olejnik pushed a firm header from Christian Benteke over the bar and Liverpool equalized again when Smith hit a first-time shot into the net.
Suarez suspended
for two Copa games
Barcelona striker Luis Suarez was suspended Friday for two Copa del Rey matches for insulting rival players.
The referee’s report for the heated match at Camp Nou that ended 4-1 for Barcelona Wednesday said Suarez insulted Espanyol players in the tunnel after the match.
Referee Juan Martinez Munuera’s report states that Suarez told Espanyol’s players: “I am waiting for you, come here. You are trash.”
Suarez picked up a yellow card during the match, and televised images showed him taunting Espanyol goalkeeper Pau Lopez after Lionel Messi scored a free kick just before halftime to make it 2-1.
This is Suarez’s first suspension since his four-month ban for biting an Italian player at the 2014 World Cup. The former Liverpool striker had already earned multi-match bans on two previous occasions for biting opponents and another for racial abuse.
PSG extends lead
Thiago Motta and Maxwell each scored as Paris Saint-Germain picked up where it left off before the midseason break with a 2-0 win over Bastia in the French league Friday.
Unbeaten domestically this season, PSG extended its lead over Monaco at the top of the standings to 22 points. — Agencies
