VAR
intervened successfully as Harry Kane's first-half penalty gave Tottenham a
1-0 win over Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at Wembley.
In an engrossing cup tie, Kane was upended by Kepa Arrizabalaga inside the
box midway through the first half, with Michael Oliver awarding the penalty
after VAR intervened following an initial incorrect call for offside.
Kane tucked the penalty away (27), but Chelsea ended the first half on top
as N'Golo Kante and Callum Hudson-Odoi hit the woodwork.
Harry Kane put Spurs in front from the penalty spot against Chelsea in the
Carabao Cup semi-final after a VAR referral
Player ratings
Tottenham: Gazzaniga (7), Trippier (6), Alderweireld (8),
Sanchez (7), Rose (8), Winks (6), Sissoko (6), Eriksen (7), Dele (7), Son
(7), Kane (7)
Subs: Lamela (NA), Skipp (NA), Llorente (NA)
Chelsea: Kepa (5), Azpilicueta (6), Christensen (5),
Rudiger (6), Alonso (6), Jorginho (5), Kante (6), Barkley (6), Willian (5),
Hazard (7), Hudson-Odoi (6)
Subs: Pedro (5), Kovacic (5), Giroud (NA)
Man of the match: Danny Rose
Chelsea dominated the ball in the second half but failed to find the net as
Andreas Christensen missed a fine chance at the far post, meaning Spurs have
the advantage going into the second leg at Stamford Bridge on January 24.
With both Mauricio Pochettino and Maurizio Sarri chasing their first major
silverware as managers, Spurs and Chelsea fielded strong sides, though the
Italian did give a fifth start of the season to Hudson-Odoi on the day
Bayern Munich upped their offer to £35m for the 18-year-old.
Spurs could have had a penalty in the first few minutes as Heung-Min Son
went down after a tussle with Christensen, but even the VAR decided against
reviewing the incident despite a strong appeal.
Team news
After weeks of speculation surrounding his future, Callum Hudson-Odoi
started for Chelsea in a front three alongside Eden Hazard and Willian.
For Spurs, Paulo Gazzaniga started in goal, but it was an otherwise strong
XI fielded after the changes made for the win at Tranmere.
Kane's acrobatic effort then went straight down Arrizabalaga's throat, but
the Spurs opener came against the run of play as Chelsea camped in the
hosts' half.
On a rare break, Kane nicked the ball past Arrizabalaga before being taken
out, though the linesman initially signalled for offside. The VAR, led by
Chris Kavanagh, showed Kane was just level, and after two minutes of
confusion inside Wembley Oliver pointed to the spot to allow the Spurs
striker to fiercely find the bottom left corner.
Kante then hit the woodwork at the near post from a Marcos Alonso cross, and
in first-half stoppage time Hudson-Odoi's deflected cross nearly outsmarted
Paulo Gazzaniga, only to come off the inside of the post for Toby
Alderweireld to clear.
After the break, Kane stung the hands of Arrizabalaga from range after a
nice move, before Kante did the same at the other end with a dipping 25-yard
effort.
Christensen then missed a clear chance at the far post as Ross Barkley
headed on Eden Hazard's corner, the defender slicing wide having failed to
get his feet right.
Chelsea pushed late on and would not have been begrudged an equaliser, but
Spurs held on for a third straight win over their London rivals for the
first time since 1961-1963.
What's next?
Spurs host Manchester United on Super Sunday at 4.30pm, live on Sky Sports
Premier League, while Chelsea host Newcastle on Saturday at 5.30pm.
Teams
Tottenham Hotspur Gazzaniga, Trippier, Alderweireld,
Sanchez, Rose, Sissoko, Winks (Skipps 90), Alli, Eriksen (Llorente 90), Son
(Lamela 79), Kane (c)
Subs Not Used Lloris, Walker-Peters, Foyth, Davies
Booked Winks, Sanchez, Lamela
Goals Kane 26 (pen)
Chelsea Kepa, Azpilicueta (c), Rudiger, Christensen,
Alonso, Kante, Jorginho, Barkley (Kovacic 75), Willian (Pedro 63), Hazard,
Hudson-Odoi (Giroud 79)
Subs Not Used Caballero, Luiz, Zappacosta, Ampadu
Booked Kepa
Goals
Attendance 44,371
Referee Michael Oliver
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