Holders Tottenham cruised into the quarter-finals of the Carling Cup with a convincing 4-2 win over Liverpool.
Campbell & Pavlyuchenko at the double for Spurs
Holders Tottenham cruised into the quarter-finals of the Carling Cup with a convincing 4-2 win over Liverpool.
Harry Redknapp's men dominated throughout against a below-par second string Liverpool as they booked their place in the last eight.
Spurs raced into a 3-0 lead with a devastating spell of three goals in six minutes at the end of the first half thanks to efforts from Roman Pavlyuchenko (38) and Fraizer Campbell 42, 45).
Liverpool pulled a goal back four minutes after the break with Damien Plessis' header from Ryan Babel's corner the visitors' first attempt on target.
Tottenham quickly snuffed out any threat of a Liverpool comeback with Pavlyuchenko netting his second goal of the night on 52 minutes.
Liverpool gave themselves hope with a second goal on 63 minutes in what was almost a carbon copy of their first as Sami Hyypia headed home Babel's corner after Heurelho Gomes flapped again at the cross.
The only sour note for Spurs was when Gomes was stretchered off soon after following a clash with Philipp Degen with Cesar coming on for his Spurs debut.
Fabio Capello was in the stands to cast an eye over Darren Bent - the player most transformed since Redknapp's arrival - but Pavlyuchenko and Campbell were given their opportunities instead.
Capello could still look at Tom Huddlestone, whose range of passing was the bright spot in a dull opening to the match.
There was only a tame penalty shout of note before the match exploded into life seven minutes before the break after Gareth Bale slipped the ball down the left flank for Campbell.
Opener
The low cross was met first time by Pavlyuchenko and the powerful finish went through Diego Cavalieri's legs.
Jamie O'Hara should have added a second a minute later, with Campbell again providing but Cavalieri saved, then Babel and Pavlyuchenko were booked as the intensity rose.
Campbell grabbed his first in the 42nd minute after O'Hara chipped through, Cavalieri and Andrea Dossena got in the way of each other, leaving an open goal for the striker.
His next goal was a header from Aaron Lennon's cross, a neat finish to give Spurs a three-goal lead.
Liverpool have history when it comes to coming back from 3-0 down, and they were given hope when Plessis headed home Babel's corner from the left three minutes after the restart.
Pavlyuchenko replied immediately, restoring the three-goal cushion when he tapped in Didier Zokora's cross.
Fernando Torres was struggling on his return from his hamstring tear. He barely had a sight of goal on his comeback and his evening was brought to an end 11 minutes into the second half when he was taken off for Emiliano Insua.
Apart from Torres and Daniel Agger, though, it was a second-string side that Benitez put out and there was no Steven Gerrard to inspire another famous comeback.
But their hopes did not fade entirely with Torres' departure, as Hyypia headed in from another corner, with Benitez then sending on Xabi Alonso.
Worrying
As Spurs protected their lead, there were worrying scenes for Redknapp as goalkeeper Gomes required lengthy treatment after Degen caught him.
Gomes was carried off on a stretcher in a neck brace, with oxygen required for the Brazilian, who was replaced by Cesar Sanchez.
Pavlyuchenko had a first hat-trick in English football in his sights but fired straight at Cavalieri when he raced through.
Liverpool fans thought they should have had a penalty when Bale tackled Degen.
Kevin-Prince Boateng, another player frozen out by Ramos, was also brought on for an appearance.
| Tottenham Hotspur |
Team Statistics |
Liverpool |
| 4 |
Goals |
2 |
| 3 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 6 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 4 |
Shots off Target |
2 |
| 2 |
Blocked Shots |
0 |
| 7 |
Corners |
5 |
| 7 |
Fouls |
10 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
2 |
| 2 |
Yellow Cards |
4 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 48 |
Possession |
52 |
|
