Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United shared seven goals between them Carabao Cup Thursday night's quarter-final match, with goalkeeping errors ultimately defining the contest.
Dominic Solanke scored a brace for Spurs either side of Dejan Kulusevski, which looked to be enough to see off the home side. But Fraser Forster gifted United two goals to Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo, before opposite number Altay Bayindir was at fault for Son Heung-min's fourth for Spurs late on.
Jonny Evans put United third deep in stoppage time, eventually a consolation.
How the game played out
Neither team did much in the early stages, with attacks at both ends breaking down when it came to executing the pass or finishing move.
So when Spurs went ahead after 15 minutes it was the first real chance of the game. The goal for Solanke started with a free-kick for the hosts, which was played outside Son's box and cut to Pedro Porro outside the area. His drive was only stopped by Bayindir in the United goal, with Solanke on hand to swallow the ball from close range.
Bayindir was called into action again midway through the first half, meeting a challenging shot from Kulusevski at the near post after the Spurs man had rounded his marker. The Swedish winger continued to cause problems and a threatening pass across the six-yard box was almost turned into his own net by Manuel Ugarte as he tried to cut it.
In the first half, United had failed to test Forster in the Spurs goal, sending a number of speculative efforts wide of the target or being frustrated by blocks.
Spurs consolidated their lead less than a minute after the restart. The hosts gave the ball to James Maddison, whose low cross was intercepted by Lisandro Martinez. But the pass was too tame, straight to Kulusevski just a few meters away and too big a gift to turn down.
The third, less than ten minutes later, was easy for Spurs. Solanke beat the offside trap, cutting inside without much resistance and fired low into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Forster's first meaningful action of the night came after the hour mark, making a superb save to his left to deny Zirkzee, who turned his back to power in a header that curled wide. But the goalkeeper went from hero to villain almost immediately, inexplicably slotting the ball straight to Bruno Fernandes inside his own area. The square ball for Zirkzee meant the Dutchman couldn't miss.
The veteran batsman soon wanted the ground to swallow him as Amad reduced the deficit further. He stayed too long with the ball at his feet, pressuring the United winger, who managed to block the attempted clearance and deflect it straight into the net.
With Ruben Amorim's side in full swing, Noussair Mazraoui came close to equalizing when he was played in and bounced back, missing the far post. Forster soon looked flustered as Amad struck from distance, awkwardly clearing the ball with a swing of his right boot.
Ultimately, Spurs were able to restore some breathing room when Son managed to exploit something that has been a United weakness in recent weeks: defending a corner. The quick delivery from the home captain was high and towards the far post, evading everyone before bursting the net. Bayindir was outraged he was allowed to stand, claiming he was tripped by Lucas Bergvall after contact between the pair as he jumped. “He pushed my hand,” the goalkeeper was seen saying, as he watched the replay on the stadium's big screen in disbelief.
Somehow, there was more to come, Evans halving the score again from a 94th-minute corner. But it was too late to level things and Spurs held on.
Check out how both sets of players performed in this one.
Mistakes and bad defense is what actually makes football fun
As Spurs went 1-0 up, and then 2-0 up, those in red couldn't help but feel that goals were inevitable.
The former did not paint goalkeeper Altay Bayindir or the defenders in front of him in a great light. The Turkish international should have done better to meet Pedro Porro's shot, which deflected slightly away from the danger rather than getting in front of him. His teammates didn't help by not anticipating and standing tall, compared to Dominic Solanke who was alive to the second ball.
The second was poor by Lisandro Martinez. The centre-back was in the right place at the right time to keep out the danger from James Maddison's low cross. But he got a weak foot on the ball and it went straight to the feet of Kulusevski, who gratefully tapped in a first-time finish.
Martinez was also at fault for the third, sitting deeper than the rest of his backline, then was beaten too easily when Solanke cut inside and threw his hand in the air as the ball hit the net as if expecting an offside flag all along. .
It should have been game over but Fraser Forster then had an absolute nightmare. He was directly responsible for each of United's first two goals scored by Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo. The latter, who saw it closed yards from his own goal, even prompted Gary Neville to say at length Sky Sportscomment: “This is one of the most Tottenham things you'll see.”
Bayindir then felt he was fouled as he pounced on Son Heug-min's late corner, which flew straight in and actually proved decisive. But it was a poor effort on his part.
Bruno Fernandes' positioning caused Spurs all sorts of problems in the first half. The United captain operated as a left-sided inside forward, which meant that opposition right-back Pedro Porro wasn't sure who to mark: Fernandes or left-back Diogo Dalot.
The result was Fernandes, who was not being dealt with by anyone else, getting himself into dangerous positions from time to time. In the second half, United's form changed with substitutions and it ended with Tottenham's mistakes in possession leading to the goals.
Dominic Solanke has now scored five times in his last four appearances against Manchester United. It started last season when the former Chelsea and Liverpool striker scored home and away for Bournemouth, continuing after a £65m summer move to Spurs.
Solanke scored in the Premier League win for Tottenham at Old Trafford earlier this season.
He took both goals very well. The first was a controlled finish that fooled Bayindir with his eyes and body shape, knocking the ball at the near post when it looked like it would aim for the far corner. The second was just as good, finding the bottom corner from 18 yards.
Having done his work on one side, he probably couldn't believe what he was seeing on the other side.
It's been a roller coaster few days for Marcus Rashford. Amid continued doubt over his future at Old Trafford, he was not selected for Sunday's Manchester derby, before being sent home from training due to illness the following day and beyond. will declare his readiness for a “new challenge”.
The United striker was again missing from the matchday squad Amorim named for this game, having not been seen when the rest of the squad traveled on Wednesday. But the head coach revealed before kick-off that his absence was still a “selection” choice, rather than anything else.
Ange Postecoglou has been under surveillance ever since said he always wins a trophy in his second season with a club. It's a statement of fact because that's what has happened throughout his coaching career to date, but given how this season has gone, many expected it to end.
Spurs will not be favorites to lift the Carabao Cup as they seek a first trophy since 2008 – that title goes to Liverpool and Arsenal. But at least being in the mix gives them a chance.
Let's wait and see what happens.