By Razeen Gutta
A contentious Lucas Bergvall goal was enough to give Tottenham Hotspur a lead heading into the Carabao Cup second leg against Liverpool.
Just over two weeks after the sides last met there in the Premier League goal fest, North London played host to a first leg tie that had goals written all over it.
The Reds’ 6-3 league win over Spurs kept them clear in top spot at Christmas, with Arne Slot once again naming a strong eleven for the encounter.
The first half was overshadowed by a scary injury to Rodrigo Bentancur which saw the Uruguayan stretchered off after a 10 minute stoppage early on.
Once the game got its flow back, neither side were able to find the clinical edge — bringing the first period to a halt with the score still 0-0.
Ange Postecoglou’s approach was solid defensively, but Liverpool fans would have expected their side to kick on in the second period.
Instead, the second half was marred by controversy surrounding 18-year-old Bergvall, whose expertly-taken finish would turn out to be the only goal of the game.
The Swedish international was already on a yellow card when he escaped a second booking for a reckless challenge on Kostas Tsimikas with just five minutes to play.
With Liverpool’s left back off receiving treatment, Spurs instantly broke, as Bergvall put his side in front much to the fury of the away end.
The defeat was just Slot’s second since taking charge of the Reds; and it means that Spurs will have a 1-0 advantage when the sides face-off at Anfield next month with a place in the final against Newcastle United or Arsenal up for grabs.
Pictured above: Lucas Bergvall
Source: @fabrizioromano
