Tottenham KNOCKED OUT of Carabao Cup by Fulham after freak own goal and penalty shootout heartbreak
ANGE POSTECOGLOU may have won the Treble in Scotland but he looks to have caught the Tottenham cup curse.
London rivals Fulham dumped Spurs out of the Carabao Cup on penalties after Kenny Tete’s shooting boots redeemed the right-back.
The Cottagers defender ran off the pitch to change his boots, leaving his side with ten men when Spurs bagged their equaliser.
Fulham had taken the lead through a comical Micky van de Ven own goal, his second in four games for the club, before Tete’s mishap allowed the visitors back in.
Neither could find a way through and Fulham capitalised after Davinson Sanchez saw his penalty saved.
Despite six and nine changes respectively from Fulham and Spurs, both managers named sides full of senior players.
But given that this competition is Tottenham’s best bet of ending their trophy drought, which has now extended into its 16th season, many Spurs fans would have hoped for a stronger eleven, with the second string getting off to a sloppy start.
Sanchez, one of a few Spurs players in the shop window tonight, sent a slow pass out wide looking for Emerson Royal who was beaten to the ball by Antonee Robinson.
The rapid American then poked the ball past Sanchez and added to his embarrassment by racing around the Colombia defender to cross for Rodrigo Muniz, who headed wide.
Spurs’ insistence on playing out from the back was causing early issues, with Silva’s side pressing feverishly and the visitors struggling to cope.
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Sanchez was having a particularly torrid time and was turned inside out for the opener.
Fulham turned up the pressure and skipper Tom Cariney pushed forward down the left sending Sanchez into a spin and crossing low where Van de Ven pulled off the greatest finish he’ll ever manage – just at the wrong end.
The low cross missed Harrison Reed but caught Van de Ven’s heel and looped over Fraser Forster and couldn’t be stopped by a flying Ivan Perisic.
The Dutchman was then sent sliding by Muniz as he tried to keep the Cottagers out, allowing the striker to fire at Forster.
Despite Spurs recovering some composure after the goal Forster had to remain sharp and pulled off a fine stop from Muniz once again, diving low to palm away his close range header from Adama Traore’s cross.
Tottenham were showing none of the intensity or creativity they have displayed in the Premier League under Postecoglou so far.
The former Celtic boss was getting tetchy with players over their positioning, getting on Pierre Emile-Hojbjerg’s case during the first half – the Dane starting despite his future being up in the air.
But it was the ineffectual Giovani Lo Celso who was hooked at the break, replaced by youngster Dane Scarlett.
Postecoglou certainly said something direct before sending Spurs back out into the west London drizzle.
The visitors picked the pace up after the break, with former Fulham man Manor Solomon darting forward with more energy than anyone showed in the first half.
Richarlison spun and saw his deflected shot tipped over the bar by Marek Rodak.
Then it was time for Fulham’s defence to better the circus offered up by Tottenham in the first half.
Tete was waving a broken boot towards his bench before working out that, with all the Fulham staff the opposite side to the tunnel, it was probably best he made a dash for the changing room himself to grab a new one.
And it turned out to be a huge amateur clanger.
With forward Bobby De Cordova-Reid having to fill in for Tete, Perisic seized his chance and drove at the makeshift right-back, shifted past him and crossed for Richarlison to head home his first goal of the season at the far post.
A surly Silva fumed from his viewpoint in the new Riverside Stand watching his former striker benefit from a moment of baffling incompetence.
Tete sheepishly emerged from the tunnel with a pair of bright white new boots on just as the celebrations died down – not the best look on the day Fulham signed a new right-back in Timothy Castange.
Sub Harry Wilson saw a well-worked effort blocked by a sliding Sanchez before, down the other end, Rodak dived well to tip Solomon’s shot wide.
Spurs had Son Heung-min and James Maddison on now trying to find a way through to avoid penalties.
It was Fulham who came closest to stealing it late on, with Forster rushing out and making another important save to deny Wilson in the 90th minute.
With no breakthrough, it was straight to penalties and Fulham held their cool with a string of fine efforts, making the most of Sanchez’s poor strike when Tete saved himself from an almighty telling off.