Chelsea defeat is another near miss for Spurs under Mauricio Pochettino
Tottenham were beaten on penalties by Chelsea in Thursday's Carabao Cup semi-final
Friday 25 January 2019 10:30, UK
We look back at Tottenham's near misses under Mauricio Pochettino after another opportunity to win silverware slipped away from them in agonising fashion at Stamford Bridge...
Chelsea 2-0 Spurs (League Cup final, March 2015)
Tottenham's closest brush with silverware under Pochettino came during his first season in charge, when they were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea in the League Cup final at Wembley.
In what was the club's first cup final appearance in six seasons, Spurs fell behind to a John Terry goal shortly before half-time, with Diego Costa scoring Chelsea's second soon after the break. Pochettino's side had beaten Chelsea 5-3 in their most recent meeting in the Premier League, but they never looked like mounting a comeback after that.
Pochettino hoped it would serve as a learning curve for his young squad. "I'm disappointed for the supporters and the players because we had a big, big effort. But this is football and we need to look forward," he said. "For a lot of our players it was their first final. This is the first step for this group. We showed we have strong character, personality and heart."
Hugo Lloris, Danny Rose, Jan Vertonghen, Eric Dier, Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane are the only members of Tottenham's starting line-up that day who remain at the club now, with Kyle Walker, Andros Townsend, Nacer Chadli, Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason all having moved on.
Chelsea 4-2 Spurs (FA Cup semi-final, April 2017)
Tottenham went into this FA Cup semi-final having won eight consecutive games in all competitions and closed the gap to just four points at the top of the Premier League table, but form went out of the window as Antonio Conte's side bounced back from a 2-0 loss to Manchester United a few days earlier to claim an emphatic win and set up an FA Cup final against Arsenal.
Spurs twice came from behind with Kane and Dele Alli cancelling out Willian goals, but Chelsea took control after Eden Hazard's introduction from the bench in the second half. The Belgian drove powerfully past Lloris to put Chelsea 3-2 up in the 75th minute before Nemanja Matic sealed the win with a brilliant long-range strike shortly afterwards.
It was tough to take for Spurs, who had matched Chelsea for long periods, but Pochettino struck a defiant tone afterwards. "We were fantastic in the way we played and in our philosophy. They had five shots and scored four goals and we score only two. We were competing today with one of the best teams in Europe. Did we deserve more? Sure, but that is football."
Man Utd 2-1 Spurs (FA Cup semi-final, April 2018)
A year on from that 4-2 loss to Chelsea, Pochettino's side found themselves in another FA Cup semi-final at Wembley - this time against Manchester United. Spurs started brightly, deservedly taking the lead when Alli slid home a Christian Eriksen cross in the 11th minute, but their advantage did not last long.
Alexis Sanchez equalised with an athletic header from Paul Pogba's cross on 24 minutes. Eric Dier then struck the post as Spurs pushed for a second, but the momentum soon swung United's way. Ander Herrera scored what turned out to be the decisive goal with a clinical low finish just after the hour mark, leaving Spurs to rue another near miss under Pochettino.
The Argentine called for some perspective afterwards. "I think we need to understand where we have come from," he said. "It's easy to talk about winning trophies. To win a trophy when you face a side like Manchester United, Chelsea or Manchester City is not easy. But the most important thing is we are able to compete."
Chelsea 2-1 Spurs (Carabao Cup semi-final, January 2019)
Chelsea held a 1-0 advantage from the first leg but it wasn't enough to take them to the final.
They fell behind to goals from N'Golo Kante and Eden Hazard at Stamford Bridge, and while Fernando Llorente levelled the aggregate score with a header against the run of play after the break, Spurs were beaten 4-2 in the shootout as Eric Dier fired his effort over and substitute Lucas Moura saw his saved by Kepa Arrizabalaga.
"Of course it's difficult but I am so proud," Pochettino told Sky Sports. "The team was so good. I am so happy with the performance and the way that we fight."
The fight for silverware continues.
