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Tottenham concede three goals in 15 minutes, eliminated from Carabao Cup

By Gary Pearson

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 25: Mauricio Pochettino, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur and Slaven Bilic, Manager of West Ham United look on during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United at Wembley Stadium on October 25, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 25: Mauricio Pochettino, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur and Slaven Bilic, Manager of West Ham United look on during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United at Wembley Stadium on October 25, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) /
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A disastrous second half saw West Ham score three unanswered goals in 15 minutes to shock Spurs, sending them crashing out of the Carabao Cup. 

It all started well enough for the home side.

Juan Foyth’s headed clearance spearheaded Spurs lethal counterattack. Danny Rose, starting his first match in 10 months, zipped an accurate pass into Fernando Llorente who played a dazzling one-time pass with the outside of his foot to set Son Heung-Min on his way.

With tight ball control and explosive pace, Son darted toward Angelo Ogbonna, forcing the West Ham defender to commit. The South Korean then calmly set Moussa Sissoko free on goal. The Frenchman’s one-touch, decisive finish was his first goal of the season in front of the partisan home support. It was his second goal in all competitions, the Frenchman also scoring Spurs fourth in the team’s away drubbing of Huddersfield in the Premier League last month.

Dele Alli looked to double Tottenham’s lead in the 17th minute, but his close range header was saved expertly by Adrian’s outstretched arm. It was a reaction save out of the top drawer. Alli, however, would not be denied.

The England midfielder played an intricate give and go with Son before Alli’s 37th minute effort took a fortuitous deflection from Declan Rice on its way past the helpless Adrian.

Spurs endured one jittery moment in the first half, when Ben Davies and Toby Alderweireld made a hash of their attempted clearances from a West Ham free kick in the 24th minute.

The ball bounced harmlessly into Michel Vorm’s mitts. Otherwise, Spurs completely dominated every facet of the first half and were fully deserving of their two-goal advantage going into the interval.

The wheels completely fell off in the second stanza, though, with André Ayew scoring twice in short succession to pull West Ham back. Vorm could only parry Edimilson Fernandes’ fierce low drive into Ayew’s path. The Frenchman had the easiest of tasks and brought the Hammers within one.

West Ham were on level terms six minutes later, when Foyth’s inexperience showed, the youngster playing West Ham onside in the 60th minute. Manuel Lanzini showed his keen eye for a pass as he picked out Ayew for his second of the day.

Ogbonna completed the comeback with a goal directly from a corner in the 70th minute. The Italian somehow wriggled free from Alderweireld’s grasp and made no mistake with his glancing header.

A miserable span of 15 minutes cost Tottenham their chance of advancing to the quarterfinal. While the Carabao Cup was at the bottom of Pochettino’s priority list, he won’t be best pleased with how quickly his team unravelled and fell apart at the seams.

And when you reflect back on Pochettino’s team selection, you can’t use the gaffer’s personnel choices as an excuse for the devastating loss. Pochettino’s side, on paper anyway, looked more than capable of getting the job done against an inferior West Ham team.

That’s football, though, and Pochettino will rue a missed opportunity to potentially pick up a piece of silverware, regardless of the Carabao Cup’s perceived insignificance.