Spurs beat Chelsea on penalties to reach cup quarterfinals

FOOTBALL

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur overcame Chelsea 54 in a penalty shootout to progress in the League Cup following a 11 home draw in their fourthround clash yesterday.

Chelsea appeared to be heading into the quarterfinals thanks to a 19thminute strike from Timo Werner but Erik Lamela forced a shootout with an equaliser in the 83rd minute, finishing from close range after controlling a cross from debutant Sergio

Reguilon.

In the shootout, Chelsea’s Mason Mount struck the post to miss the decisive fifth penalty after every other spot kick had been converted.

Germany forward Werner scored his first goal for Chelsea in his fourth appearance, lashing the ball into the net from the edge of the area after receiving a cutback from Cesar Azpilicueta.

Chelsea’s new goalkeeper Edouard Mendy had a confident display in his first game since switching from Stade Rennes, making a good save to keep out a vicious shot from Spurs’ Spanish left back Reguilon in the second half.

But Mendy was finally beaten in the 83rd minute when Reguilon turned in the box and found Lamela, who controlled the ball at the far post before netting from close range to force the shootout in which Tottenham prevailed.

The victory was revenge for Spurs for a 2019 League Cup semifinal secondleg defeat to Chelsea on penalties.

Spurs boss Jose Mourinho, meanwhile, got one over his former Chelsea player Frank Lampard, whose Derby County side beat a Manchester United team then coached by the Portuguese in a League Cup shootout in 2018.

‘‘We were ready to fight.

‘‘I told the players before the penalties that they were magnificent in the second half. We made Chelsea look ordinary.

‘‘The team waited for the right moment,'' Mourinho said.

The League Cup fixture, which came only two days after their 11 draw with Newcastle United, was the second game of a gruelling run of four matches in eight days for Spurs.

Mourinho’s side faces Maccabi Haifa at home in a Europa League playoff tomorrow before a league fixture at Manchester United on Monday.

Mourinho made nine changes to the team who had faced Newcastle, sticking with firstchoice goalkeeper Hugo Lloris instead of new signing Joe Hart and giving a second start in three days to Eric Dier, who stepped up to score the first penalty.

``I have to think about three games at the same time but the players only thought about this game, they were phenomenal.

Phenomenal,'' added Mourinho, who praised England international Dier despite the defender leaving the pitch to go to the toilet during the second half.

``What happened to Eric Dier is not normal.

‘‘I have to praise him in a special way. It should be forbidden for a player to play two games in 48 hours at this level.

‘‘What he did is not human to do.'' — Reuters