Tottenham Hotspur overcame two costly mistakes by stand-in goalkeeper Fraser Forster to secure a dramatic 4-3 victory over Manchester United on Thursday, earning a place in the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
The London side appeared to be cruising at 3-0 in the 54th minute after a brace from Dominic Solanke and a strike from Dejan Kulusevski. However, a series of errors from Forster allowed United substitutes Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo to reduce the deficit to 3-2 with 20 minutes remaining.
United piled on the pressure as they dominated the final stages, but Spurs regained control when Son Heung-min scored from a corner. Despite Jonny Evans pulling one back for United late on, Tottenham held firm to secure the win.
Tottenham will now face Premier League leaders Liverpool in the semi-finals, while Arsenal takes on Newcastle in the other two-legged tie.
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou acknowledged his injury-hit squad’s resilience while defending his attacking philosophy.
“It should have been a lot more comfortable,” Postecoglou admitted. “But I still can’t get away from the fact that this group of players has done an unbelievable job to get us through this.
“I know people will say, ‘Don’t take risks,’ but we wouldn’t be scoring four or five goals without taking them. Scoring is the hardest thing in football, and we’re achieving it with a squad stretched to its limits.”
Spurs, currently 10th in the Premier League, are eyeing their first silverware in 16 years since lifting the Carabao Cup in 2008 under Juande Ramos. Postecoglou remains on track to fulfill his reputation of winning trophies in his second season at every club he has managed.
For Manchester United, the defeat was a reality check following their stunning 2-1 Premier League win against Manchester City on Sunday. New manager Ruben Amorim made five changes to his starting lineup, while Spurs included six academy players on their bench.
Despite the loss, Amorim praised his team’s effort, saying, “We weren’t the best team throughout the game, but for most parts, we were. Unfortunately, we disconnected for eight minutes, and it was really hard to recover from that. But the lads did a great job overall.”
United’s lineup notably excluded Marcus Rashford for the second consecutive game, while Alejandro Garnacho made a second-half appearance after missing Sunday’s match.
The thrilling encounter leaves Tottenham one step closer to a Wembley final in March, while United must regroup as they continue their season under Amorim’s guidance.
