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Spurs survive Red Devils in crazy Carabao Cup tie

Rachel07 mins


Heung-Min Son’s goal from a corner helped secure Tottenham Hotspur’s 4-3 win over Manchester United in a lively Carabao Cup quarter-final tie.

Dominic Solanke’s brace and Dejan Kulusevski’s effort looked like a comfortable night for Spurs, but two mistakes from goalkeeper Fraiser Forster brought United back into the game.

An early sloppy pass allowed Joshua Zirkzee to reduce the deficit before Amad Diallo closed the gap to set up a nervy finish.

But United’s hopes of making a great comeback were dashed when Son scored directly from a corner in another goalkeeping horror moment, this time by visiting stopper Altay Bayindir.

Jonny Evans grabbed another brace for United in added time but it was not enough to stop Ange Postecoglou’s men from joining Liverpool, Arsenal and Newcastle in the semi-finals.

The hosts took the lead through Solanke inside 15 minutes after substitute goalkeeper Altay Bayindir failed to get hold of a James Maddison free-kick, with the former Bournemouth striker making no mistake from the rebound.

Kulusevski then parried the United stopper, slotting brilliantly past a defender before his volley was stopped.

The Swedish forward was at the center of another close shave for the Red Devils as a clever combination with Heung-Min Song eventually found its way, his pass blocked by Manuel Ugarte narrowly missing the goal.

And the in-form 24-year-old had his goal, his fourth in as many games, less than a minute into the second half as Maddison’s cut-back was badly dealt with by Lisandro Martinez, allowing the Spurs man to grab another. United’s mistake.

For the second time this season, Spurs went 3-0 up against United as Solanke sprung the offside trap before beating Martinez and Evans before slotting home his second with ease.

Substitute Joshua Zirkzee created United’s first chance of the second half, heading the ball towards goal and forcing a powerful save from Forster.

But the keeper’s joy was short lived as he carelessly fed the ball to Bruno Fernandes, who found Zirkzee for an easy finish to reduce the deficit.

That goal threatened to upset Spurs and galvanize United, with substitute Amad Diallo seeing a deflected effort narrowly miss the post after a series of corners.

It soon became 3-2 in the most outrageous fashion and was the only result for the home side. A sloppy set of passes put Forster under pressure before the veteran stopper closed the gap on Amad and deflected inside to cause a shock in North London.

Hearts continued to be in mouths as the final 10 minutes approached, particularly when Forster chose to strangely keep out Amad’s long-range strike with his feet rather than his hands.

But United’s hopes of an improbable comeback were dashed when Son found the net from a rare Spurs corner, the ball slipping past Bayadir in another goalkeeping moment to forget in this Carabao Cup tie.

Just when you thought the action was over, Evans grabbed a third for United, but it wasn’t enough to halt Spurs’ progress as Postecoglou keeps his promise of a trophy alive in his second season in charge.



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