Sheffield United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (2-3 on agg): Christian Eriksen double sends Spurs to Wembley - 7M sport

Sheffield United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (2-3 on agg): Christian Eriksen double sends Spurs to Wembley



Posted Thursday, January 29, 2015 by The Telegraph

Sheffield United v Tottenham Hotspur, League Cup semi-final second leg - The League One side so nearly cause an upset, but Eriksen scores late to settle the tie

Sheffield United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (2-3 on agg): Christian Eriksen double sends Spurs to Wembley
Stunner: Christian Eriksen celebrates putting Tottenham 1-0 up against Sheffield United

Spurs are on their way to Wembley but they almost got held up in a snow drift and an ambush by a teenager. The blizzard drifting into Bramall Lane was followed by lightning striking twice in the form of 18-year-old Che Adams, who scored two quick goals and Spurs survived only because of the brilliance of Christian Eriksen and the new resilience instilled by Mauricio Pochettino.

Tottenham Hotspur are on their way to the Capital One Cup final because of their elegant Dane, who made light of the difficult conditions, scoring a sumptuous free-kick to give them the lead. Then came Adams, rising from the bench, proving an inspired substitution by Nigel Clough. Adams ripped Spurs’ defence apart with the sort of brio he had shown earlier this season in games for Ilkeston FC when up to 45 scouts would watch him. Three months ago, Adams scored one goal against FC United of Manchester after running from his own half in the Evostik League Premier Division. He signed for Sheffield United and these were his first goals in his fourth appearance.

The old Spurs would have folded but this is the new Spurs, the Spurs of Pochettino. There is a toughness to them, an ability to recover when a game’s momentum threatens to turn against them. They are organised.

They keep their shape and discipline. They score late goals, so many late goals, against West Ham, Aston Villa, Hull City, Swansea City, Leicester City and Sunderland. They fight. Spurs negotiated some late pressure and it was not the greatest of surprises when Eriksen ran through and placed the ball past Mark Howard to register his 10th goal of the season and guide Spurs to Wembley.

So the Capital One Cup final will be contested by the Capital Two, Spurs and Chelsea, a repeat of the 2008 League Cup final. Spurs fans will hope it is a repeat result, Juande Ramos’s side winning 2-1. Spurs fans will also hope it is a repeat of their last meeting, their 5-3 triumph over Chelsea at White Hart Lane.

As Tottenham fans returned south, there was only one issue threatening to snow on their parade and that was that they have to play in the Europa League at Fiorentina on Feb 26, three days before the big date at Wembley. Tottenham will receive 31,000 tickets and the club believe they could easily sell three times that.

For this test of their mettle in the Steel City, Spurs had been allocated 4,000 tickets, then offered another 1,500 which were all snapped up. This huge travelling throng made it through the sleet and the traffic, taking up their seats in the Jessica Ennis Stand, watching their team suffer some early scares.

Bramall Lane had thrown everything at Spurs even in the warm-up when the snow swept in from the Pennines and "our very own Def Leppard" blasted from the speakers. The announcer timed his run towards Mike Dean’s opening whistle perfectly, exhorting United to "let’s make history".

Clough was on the edge of his technical area, gesturing his team forward, with Jose Baxter looking to support Marc McNulty, with Jamie Murphy immediately influential on the left flank and with Jamal Campbell-Ryce looking to run at Ben Davies. It was surprising to see Davies starting after he had struggled to cope with the pace of Campbell-Ryce at White Hart Lane.

After 10 minutes, he sped past Davies, reached the byline and lifted the ball across. Michel Vorm fumbled the cross, the ball spilling to Murphy. As Vorm tried to recover, Murphy drove the ball goalwards but there was Walker on the line, clearing and frustrating his old team.

United’s supporters had flocked to this famous old arena in numbers, contesting Dean’s decisions, urging their team to secure their sixth win over Premier League opposition since Clough was appointed in October 2013.

But there is a character to this Spurs side. Ryan Mason and Benjamin Stambouli patrolled central midfield. Mousa Dembélé pushed on. Eriksen was then presented with a free-kick chance after 28 minutes.

When Stambouli was fouled 25 yards out, Eriksen and Erik Lamela stood over the ball as Mike Dean did the 10-yard duties with the vanishing spray. The free-kick was slightly right of centre and United built a two-man wall protecting Howard’s left-hand post. Howard prepared himself on the line.

Nothing could prepare him for what happened next. As Eriksen ran in, the Dane shaped to play the ball to the near-post, prompting Howard to take two steps to the left. Eriksen continued his run, connecting with the ball, lifting it high and seemingly flying wide to Howard’s right.

The keeper watched its journey, believing it was heading harmlessly out. Yet it dipped, dropping under the bar, kissing the post and landing in the net. It was a magnificent right-footed strike, echoing a David Beckham special against Everton in 2003.

Eriksen cost only £11 million when signing from Ajax in August 2013, proving the most consistently excellent use of the Gareth Bale money. He has played drifting in from the left, but clearly enjoys dominating the centre, and moved inside frequently here. His goal meant United required two to force extra time.

Clough’s players were out early for the second half, waiting impatiently for Spurs, eager to try to turn this around. "We’ve done it before,’’ declared Bramall Lane’s announcer. "We can turn it round.
Believe. Give the lads everything for 45 minutes." The Kop responded. So did their team, attacking their favourite end. Murphy cut in from the left, tricking Dembélé, winning a free-kick.

Baxter let fly from 20 yards into a forest of yellow shirts. Harry Kane was back helping out, clearing the ball. Lamela tracked back occasionally on the right.

Spurs had their chances on the counter, especially when Kane was accelerating into the box, shooting wide and then denied by Howard.

Spurs had other chances, including an Eriksen free-kick that was stopped by the wall and then a Kane free-kick that was repelled by Howard. As the clock ticked down, the Spurs fans continued to sing with ever more fervour about Wembley.

They then fell silent as the tie was turned on its head by a teenager. Clough sent on Michael Higdon, who led the line, and Adams who ran everywhere. Adams was devastating, scoring two goals in three minutes. His first goal after 77 minutes came after a magnificent Ryan Flynn cross from the right was allowed to travel across the Spurs box until Adams intervened, controlling the ball and sweeping it past Vorm.

As Adams celebrated down by the corner flag, his team-mates signalled to get back for the restart. They believed. United fans lifted the decibel level higher, almost raising the roof when Murphy’s cross was controlled by Adams, who then fired it via a deflection off Eric Dier past Vorm. Bramall Lane was shaking in its ancient foundations.

But then came Eriksen again, sliding in his fourth vital goal of the season after the 87th minute. Running on to Kane’s pass, Eriksen coolly placed the ball past Howard to send Spurs on their way to Wembley.



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