Tottenham won 1-0 in next month’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg with Liverpool thanks to Lucas Bergvall’s second-half winner.
Much will be said about whether the young Swede should have been given the chance to convert the winner, but Spurs were good value for their first-leg win on Wednesday night.
For the second game in a row, Liverpool were underdogs but are far from out of the draw with a thrilling second leg away to Anfield next month.
How the game developed
Arne Slot may have surprised a few heading into Wednesday night due to the lack of respite his team has had over the past month. Breathers should come this weekend against Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup before the league leaders travel to Nottingham Forest.
However, the Dutchman made four changes from the side that won 6-3 in the U17 before Christmas, with the bulk of the changes coming in defence.
Ange Postecoglou went as hard as he could under the circumstances, and there was an immediate debut for newcomer Antonin Kinsky between the posts. South Korean Yang Min-hyeok was named on the bench.
Radu Dragusin forced a smart save from Alisson in the opening exchanges, but their early momentum was halted by Rodrigo Bentancur’s nasty head and neck injury. The Uruguayan was taken off after a long layoff and was thankfully later reported conscious.
We can confirm that Rodrigo is conscious, talking and will go to the hospital for further checks.
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 8, 2025
The projected chaos never came in the opening period, with the contest suffering stoppages. Tottenham, perhaps keen to avenge their December defeat, contested fiercely and were the superior team for much of the first half, but the Reds grew into the contest after a slow and sloppy start, and eventually they forced the hosts to “cling” early. half time However, the novice Kinsky was tested infrequently.
There was no change in momentum after the restart, although the contest should have been ignited by an early Spurs goal. After Bergvall worked tirelessly to finish off a casual Alisson, Pedro Porro inexplicably spurned two golden chances, the first of which was brilliantly blocked by Virgil van Dijk.
Slot opted for a triple change in an attempt to light a fuse, with Liverpool intent on getting a leg up on them at Anfield next month. One of the participants, Trent Alexander-Arnold, went close with a sumptuous half-volley, but the Englishman was expertly denied on the line by Dragusin.
The hosts then thought they had taken a precious lead when Dominic Solanke finished past Alisson after latching on to Porro’s divine pass, but VAR was on hand to snuff out Lilywhite’s spirits with Stuart Attwell, via speech (!), confirming that Solanke was offside.
The Tottenham striker, however, played a key role in the first and eventual winning goal. Solanke won the jersey from Bergvall, who finished calmly, having held off Ibrahima Konate and picking out the advancing Swede.
With Liverpool unable to move through the gears afterwards, Spurs held on and will take a precious lead at Anfield in February.
Check out the player ratings for Tottenham vs Liverpool here.
Slot’s team selection showed respect for the hosts, but could also have suggested the Dutchman was keen to wrap up this semi-final away from home.
However, after escaping with a point against Manchester United on SundayLiverpool struggled in Wednesday’s first leg just weeks after wiping out the Lilywhites.
There were archetypal raises, but the reds were generally slow and cautious in N17. Tottenham stifled their build-up early and it took a while for their powerful forward line to get involved in the contest. Passes went awry as Slot’s side produced an unprecedented display of incoherence, with their inability to create chances not only a result of their sloppy work without the ball, but also the dogged effort of hosts out of possession.
A 1-0 deficit is far from insurmountable, especially with the second leg coming at a ground where Tottenham’s top teams have died quickly in the past. However, there is much for Slot to ponder.
Much was made of Postecoglou’s decision to withdraw Lucas Bergvall in the second half of Spurs’ defeat to Newcastle on Saturday, but the suspensions of James Maddison and Pape Sarr meant the Swede was needed for freshness against the Reds .
It initially looked like Bergvall would have the chance to thrive in a free-flowing midfield role, but Bentancur’s forced withdrawal saw Ange change course. With Dejan Kulusevski switching sides, the young midfielder had to be closer to Yves Bissouma, but Bergvall was undeterred, as was the case on Saturday, playing a more disciplined role.
Bergvall, along with the equally impressive Archie Gray and Djed Spence, display the grit and courage their coach encourages them to play with. While Gray stepped up imperiously, Spence refused to care as Mohamed Salah went closest to the assist, Bergvall’s off-ball effort was outstanding.
He may have been lucky to have stayed on the pitch, but the 18-year-old was a deserved match-winner on Wednesday night.
Tottenham have a lot of work to do in the January transfer window, and Johan Lange worked stealthily to secure his first signing of the month. 98% of the fan base had not heard of 21-year-old Czech goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky before the links appeared about his imminent arrival.
However, he would have won big on debut.
The short sleeves are an aesthetic question mark, but Kinsky otherwise looks the part. His ball work was brilliant throughout as he showed his ability to flick deft passes over pressers and hit long balls in behind. More often than not, he waited until the last minute to break free just to make sure some hearts among the Tottenham faithful stopped.
Most of Liverpool’s efforts required routine saves, but Kinsky produced an excellent quick save to deny Darwin Núñez in the second half before smartly tipping the Uruguayan’s breakthrough effort onto the post in stoppage time .
Are you watching, Guglielmo?
