Tottenham Survive United Comeback in 4-3 Win

If defending is an art, this match was utter chaos. The EFL Cup quarterfinal saw Tottenham win 4-2 against Manchester United in an open match filled with individual errors.

It was a good start for Ange Postecoglou’s side as Dominic Solanke scored in the 15th minute for Tottenham. Backup goalkeeper Altay Bayindir poorly deflected a shot into the path of Solanke who finished at the near post. Manchester United’s best chance in the first half came from former Tottenham player Christian Eriksen, who received a great pass from an overlapping fullback run, but the shot was well-blocked.

The second half got off to a blistering start. Spurs winger Dejan Kulusevski scored an easy tap-in after Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez failed to clear a pass to make it 2-0. The Swede has now scored in his last four games in a row.

Martinez’s blushes didn’t end there. Solanke got the better of the Argentine defender again as he failed to get close enough to the English striker, which allowed him to carve out enough space for a shot to make it 3-0. All three goals were embarrassingly avoidable, and new coach Manchester United coach Ruben Amorim would be far from happy at how they occurred.

Tottenham goalkeeper Fraser Forster gifted Manchester United a goal back after a misplaced pass under pressure found its way to United player Bruno Fernandes, who squared it to Joshua Zirkzee for a tap-in to make it 3-1. Forster made yet another error after he received a backpass but took too long on the ball, allowing Amad Diallo to intercept the ball and make it 3-2.

Heung Min-Son made it 4-2 for Spurs by scoring an Olimpico (a goal directly from a corner kick), much to the protest of Bayindir who claimed he was impeded. United player Johnny Evans scored from a corner two minutes later to make it 4-3, but it was too little too late.

Despite the defensive disaster class, it is an important win for Tottenham before their major match-up against league leaders Liverpool this weekend. They have failed to build momentum for much of the season, often going on a short win streak before capitulating a few games later. Injuries aside, Postecoglou will be eager to win his 3rd game in a row in all competitions this Sunday against Liverpool. Tottenham will play Liverpool in the EFL Cup semifinal early next year.

Manchester United and Ruben Amorim would feel his side deserved to win. They had a far superior expected goal rate (xG 2.56 to 0.67) and more shots (20 to 9). His side have now conceded 9 goals in their last four games, mostly due to individual errors. They will play the impressive Bournemouth, who are 6th in the Premier League table this Sunday.