Carabao Cup news: Five things we learned from Tottenham’s late win over Liverpool

In a stunning upset, Tottenham defied expectations to secure a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg.

Young talents Lucas Bergvall, Antonin Kinsky, and Archie Gray emerged as the unlikely heroes as Ange Postecoglou’s side overcame poor form and an untimely injury crisis.

There was some controversy regarding Bergvall’s potential sending off, but Liverpool’s protestations ultimately fell on deaf ears and they will now have to regroup ahead of the second leg.

Sports News Blitz writer Christian Willis analyses five key takeaways from the match.

Hosts triumph despite poor form, injury crisis

On a four-game winless run and having lost 6-3 to Liverpool a few weeks back, it is fair to say that Spurs fans were feeling rather apprehensive before the first-leg tie on Wednesday.

In addition, the Lilywhites were missing ten first-team players including James Maddison and Pape Matar Sarr, who were both suspended after the quarter-finals.

This meant that Ange Postecoglou was forced once again to rely heavily on the youth of 18-year-olds Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall plus new signing Antonin Kinsky.

Yet, although those problems were compounded early on by losing Rodrigo Bentancur to a head injury, Tottenham actually looked the more threatening side for large parts of the clash, especially in the second half when Liverpool were particularly wasteful.

There was a touch of controversy late on regarding Lucas Bergvall’s slide tackle on Kostas Tsimikas, with the midfielder already on a yellow thanks to some earlier theatrics from Luis Diaz.

Unfortunately for Liverpool, Bergvall went on to score what proved to be the winner for Tottenham after some brilliant hold-up play by Dominic Solanke.

As a result, Spurs take a one-goal advantage into the second leg at Anfield next month.

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Bergvall and Gray key to Tottenham’s future

Thanks to the aforementioned injury crisis, both Bergvall and Gray have become fixtures in Postecoglou’s plans this season.

Midfielder Gray has started the last eight games at centre-back, performing admirably in what is an unnatural position for the Englishman.

While he has featured less in comparison, Bergvall has nevertheless looked promising when called upon and the semi-final first leg was, by all accounts, a breakout moment for the young Swede.

It was his energy and intensity that gave Spurs the edge in midfield over the tired-looking pair of Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister.

To put the icing on the cake, he brilliantly slotted the winner – his first goal for Tottenham – and was deservedly declared the man of the match.

With Gray playing a key role in Spurs keeping their first clean sheet in six matches, Postecoglou was proud of the maturity and calmness shown by his young players.

“Name me another Premier League team that’s got two 18-year-olds and one playing out of position consistently,” the Australian said.

“I’m so happy they’re at our football club and, in two or three years’ time, I just pray to God I’m the beneficiary of their talent, because if somebody else is getting it, I won’t be happy.”

If the duo can perform like this consistently and continue to develop, they will soon challenge Postecoglou’s first-choice midfielders for starting spots.

Considering both are on long-term deals and seemingly happy with their minutes this term, Spurs are going to have a couple of potential world-class talents on their books for the foreseeable future.

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Dream debut for Antonin Kinsky

Goalkeeper debuts are always nerve-racking for players and fans alike.

Guglielmo Vicario’s debut last season was a perfect example of this as the Italian looked decidedly shaky on the ball and conceded twice in a draw at Brentford.

However, with first-choice Vicario and back-up Fraser Forster both currently unavailable due to injury, Tottenham had no choice but to dip into the market for a new ‘keeper last week.

Highly rated Czech talent Antonin Kinsky was subsequently signed from Slavia Prague for a reported fee of £12m.

Postecoglou duly put his faith in the 21-year-old by handing him his debut four days later.

Kinsky then made six saves to ensure the Lilywhites’ first home clean sheet since October, with his two saves from Darwin Nunez particularly eye-catching.

The Czech was moreover a calming presence on the ball, playing short-range and long-range passes with ease.

This is good news for Tottenham, who would have been sweating on Forster’s capabilities after his calamitous display against Manchester United in the previous round.

Postecoglou made sure to mention Kinsky in his post-match comments: “Incredible. I got that sense when I spoke to him, before we signed him, that he has a real assuredness about him and is real clear-headed about what he wants to achieve.”

Spurs’ newest signing will now look ahead with confidence to a potential FA Cup tie at Tamworth and then possibly a trip to the Emirates to face north London rivals Arsenal in the league.

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Fatigue beginning to affect Liverpool

Following a disappointing draw at home to struggling Manchester United, Liverpool were looking to bounce back at Tottenham in a game the Reds were firm favourites to win.

Arne Slot decided to start the trio of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and Alisson for the first time in this season’s competition after rotating heavily in previous rounds.

That decision did not work out as Liverpool looked a shadow of the team that trounced Spurs a couple of weeks ago.

Tsimikas and Conor Bradley were shaky on the ball throughout, losing possession far too frequently.

Alisson was likewise sloppy, almost caught out by Bergvall at one point and only spared by a poor follow-up from Pedro Porro.

In the end, Slot had to bring on Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez, and Luis Diaz for Liverpool to start looking dangerous again.

However, it was Spurs who managed to break the deadlock, with Solanke brushing off an ineffectual Ibrahima Konate to set up Bergvall for the winner.

The Reds will now have to rely on a second-leg comeback at Anfield in order to overturn the deficit and advance past this rejuvenated Spurs side.

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VAR controversy, again

The semi-final first-leg tie made history as it became the first instance in English football of a referee explaining a VAR decision to the crowd.

In a manner resembling the approach seen in NFL and rugby, referee Stuart Attwell – in conjunction with Stockley Park – ruled out a 76th-minute Solanke goal for offside before stating over the stadium’s PA system: “After a review, Dominic Solanke was in an offside position in the build-up to the goal, therefore the decision is offside."

While the finer details of such a process will inevitably take some time to iron out, it is a welcome and necessary step in the right direction.

Sadly, it was a different refereeing moment that would grab the headlines.

As the second half wore on, Bergvall appeared to catch Tsimikas with a late tackle during an advantage. When play stopped, Attwell decided against giving the Tottenham midfielder a second yellow card, much to the shock of the Liverpool bench.

Another VAR controversy to add to the pile, then.

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