Dominik Szoboszlai scored a wondrous late volley to book Liverpool‘s place in the fourth round of the EFL Cup with a 3-1 defeat of Tottenham at Anfield.
Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola made 10 changes from the draw with Fulham at the weekend, but they appeared on course for a comfortable evening against struggling Spurs after Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo put them into a 2-0 lead.
But Tottenham showed spirit that has been too often lacking in their winless start to the Premier League season, and Conor Gallagher gave them hope of a fightback.
Liverpool’s Giorgi Mamardashvili was the busier of the two goalkeepers as Tottenham pushed for an equaliser that would have forced penalties, but Szoboszlai removed that possibility from the equation with a remarkable swerving long-range volley that left Martin Dubravka with no chance and made it another disappointing evening for Roberto De Zerbi’s men.
Tottenham dominated the early stages and would have taken the lead had Mamardashvili not displayed superb reflexes to keep out Lucas Bergvall’s close-range effort with his legs.
Dubravka saved well from Lewis Koumas at the other end, but there was nothing he could do to deny Mac Allister as Spurs were punished for not taking advantage of their early superiority.
Mac Allister produced an instinctive finish to curl into the top-right corner from the edge of the area after the ball broke to him following a challenge on Rio Ngumoha.
Mohammed Kudus spurned a chance to quickly restore parity as he turned over from close range from Destiny Udogie’s low cross, before Mac Allister curled off target with a free-kick shortly before half-time.
Liverpool needed just nine second-half minutes to make Tottenham further regret their missed opportunities in the first, Gakpo illustrating why Spurs had an interest in his services in the summer by shifting the ball onto his right foot and rifling beyond a helpless Dubrvaka.
Still, Spurs carried more of a threat than they have in most of their Premier League matches this season, and Kudus drew a strong save from Mamardashvili on the turn before Tottenham got some deserved reward for their attacking endeavour.
Tottenham’s hope came in the simplest of fashions, with Gallagher rising to meet Matheus Fernandes’ corner and nodding in from point-blank range.
Liverpool were pushed deeper and deeper as Spurs pushed to complete the comeback, with Omar Marmoush drawing a brilliant save from Mamardashvili and his fellow former Manchester City forward Savio dragging wide of the post after creating space for himself in the box.
Yet the nerves around Anfield were dispelled with one swing of the a right boot in the first minute of stoppage time, Szoboszlai sending Anfield into raptures as he cushioned the ball down with his chest and allowed it to bounce before unleashing a 35-yard thunderbolt amid a deluge of rain to end Tottenham’s hopes of a much-needed recovery effort.
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