New Delhi: A frenetic end to a game that had everything! Tottenham defeating the holders Liverpool 1-0 in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, there will be plenty to discuss. Tottenham threateaned early when they almost managed to come up with the lead early into the game after Konstantinos Tsimikas misplaced a pass in his own defensive third and Dominic Solanke immediately regained possession inside the box. However, Virgil Van Dijk applied enough pressure to stop the Spurs forward from giving Tottenham the early boost.
Soon after that, Tottenham produced yet another chance when Heung Min-Son received a corner near the edge of the box, and he took his shot into the box, but Dragusin deflected the attempt as it was headed for the goal. Alisson had to make a fantastic save to keep the score deadlocked. There was not much for the visitors to smile about in the opening 20 minutes, but finally they managed to take their first shot on target in the 23rd minute by Cody Gakpo.
An unmarked Mac Allister headed the free kick towards the goal after Tsimikas curled it into the center of the box. However, he was unable to correctly direct his header, as it landed directly in the debutant Kinsky’s gloves. There were 11 added minutes into the first half and both the sides managed to get their shots on target late in the first 45 but it remained 0-0.
A fantastic finish to a classic
⏹️ @SpursOfficial will take a 1-0 advantage to Anfield!#EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/mtiuwown3l
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) January 8, 2025
It was again a slow start to the second half when neither of the two sides managed to create any sort of opportunities to go in front. However, a moment panic almost gave the hosts an early lead in the second half when a back pass from Gakpo was completely messed up by Alisson as Bergvall closed him down. In the first challenge, Bergvall grabbed control again from behind, but the Liverpool goalie escaped relatively undamaged. Subsequently, Van Dijk blocked Pedro Porro’s initial effort, and he attempted to chip it over Alisson but missed.
The Liverpool attacker Darwin Nunez was denied by the debutant Antonin Kinsky, who quickly left his line to close down the angle after Salah, who was also having one of his quite nights, released Nunez inside the box. Then a moment of shear madness, when Alexander-Arnold drilled it first towards the goal after Tsimikas played it in but Dragusin was there to clear it off the line before Mac Allister dragged the follow-up attempt wide.
Onto the other end just moments later, Tottenham believed they had the crucial lead as Solanke moved onto Porro’s ball over the top of the Liverpool defence before putting a low drive past Alisson after a few touches to find the net. However, Solanke went a bit early on his run to the lengthy VAR probe for offside. Although it was extremely tight, the decision was no goal. Then came the moment everyone was waiting for.
Less than 30 seconds after he was on the verge of receiving a second yellow card for a foul on Tsimikas, Lucas Bergvall scored the match-winning goal in the 86th minute while the Liverpool full-back was still off the field after the altercation. After a struggle with Konate, Solanke successfully won the ball and passed it to Bergvall, who hit it first and slotted it into the bottom corner. Spurs had their noses in front late in the game with Liverpool players fuming.
However, it’s a huge win for Spurs and Postecoglou, who entered the match having dropped three of their previous four Premier League games. On February 6, the second leg of this match will take place at Anfield.
Player of the match: Antonin Kinsky
🤍 A debut to remember! #CarabaoCup | @SpursOfficial pic.twitter.com/Xy1BCykXOm
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) January 8, 2025
The Tottenham debutant goalkeeper had a memorable game against the holders, as he produced a top performance. He made it look like a regular routine game for him and kept the fearsome attackers of Liverpool at bay with some crucial saves. A strong stop against the shot taken by Cody Gakpo was only one of the six saves that he had in that game. The goalie managed to keep a clean sheet and looked extremely comfortable in between the sticks for Ange Postecoglou’s side. It will be intersting to see how the youngster performs in the upcoming games.
It was an insane ending to the EFL clash between Tottenham and Liverpool as Ange Postecoglou’s men scored late to carry a 1-0 advantage in the second leg of the semi final. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
