Tottenham had threatened to win at a canter. Two goals up after 25 minutes, there was almost disbelief within the home crowd and not only because Timo Werner had scored the first.
Everybody knew this was not how the story would go and so we had the Manchester City fightback, Matheus Nunes pulling one back before half-time and then a concerted attempt by Spurs to seal the deal. They created chances, a good number of them, some crystal clear and yet they could not take them.
When the substitute, Richarlison, failed to finish at close range on 83 minutes, it felt obvious that City would have the opportunity to save their skins, to rescue a performance that did not reach the levels that Pep Guardiola demands.
They got it, the ball falling to the 19-year-old, Nico O’Reilly, after Guglielmo Vicario had flapped at a corner and his shot was goalbound, only to be cleared off the line by the substitute, Yves Bissouma.
Spurs would get the job done, this a result to energise their season and one they deserved, however much they forced their fans through the wringer. City will look elsewhere for silverware.
It was a night when the teamsheets were always going to be scrutinised – disproportionately so, perhaps – especially after Guardiola’s comments following City’s victory over Watford in the previous round. He said he would “play the second team” in this tie; City were “not going to waste energy, for sure.” And yet they were strong; six changes, although three of them were John Stones, Nathan Aké and Ilkay Gündogan. Which said plenty.
Postecoglou was never going to start with his best XI, however much a constituency of the Spurs fanbase wanted him to; the people who considered this game to be more important than Sunday’s Premier League match against Aston Villa. Postecoglou does not see it that way. He omitted Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie at the outset, Yves Bissouma and James Maddison, too. Nevertheless, it could hardly be described as a weakened lineup.
Udogie was on inside 13 minutes for Micky Van de Ven, who started at left-back. Van de Ven hurt his hamstring in the act of stretching to win a slide tackle on Savinho and departed in visible distress. Still, Spurs were a goal to the good at that point and it was a lead that their committed and pacy start merited.
Brennan Johnson provided the spark with a lovely backheel that sent Dejan Kulusevski haring down the right, City exposed, and the low cross to Werner at the far post always looked on. Could he execute it? Absolutely. Werner got there before Rico Lewis and opened up his body for the side-footed finish.
Guardiola had opened up with Phil Foden in the No 9 role, James McAtee working off him and it was strange to see City so disjointed in the early stages, struggling to join up their passes. Gündogan missed one to Stones on the edge of the City box and he was fortunate that Werner shot straight at Stefan Ortega.
It was nosebleed territory for Spurs midway through the first-half when Sarr made it 2-0. Kulusevski worked a short corner with Werner and Sarr started his long-range curler well outside the near post. To Ortega’s surprise, the midfielder was able to bring the ball back inside it at the last moment.
At which point Spurs stopped doing what they had previously done, sinking back, making errors. City started to dig out their footholds. They created chances, Nunes almost finding Foden after outpacing Archie Gray; Foden then volleying just high after another Nunes ball.
There were groans from the home crowd when four minutes of stoppage-time were signalled. Foden had just lifted a free-kick off-target after an Udogie mistake. It was as if they knew what was coming. It did when Savinho beat Udogie to cross and Nunes was all alone at the far post to finish. Game on.
Postecoglou could be seen shaking his head as Nunes celebrated. He knew what had been coming. He was also aware of the need for his team to bring greater energy at the start of the second period, which they did. Spurs got in behind City’s high last line on a fistful of occasions before the hour mark and yet they could not finish.
The South Stand had chanted during the first half that “Timo Werner scores when he wants.” They know it is not true. Werner wasted a one-on-one with Ortega and wafted another chance high. Johnson had extended Ortega and the goalkeeper would also throw out a hand to thwart Kulusevksi as he ran clear up the inside right.
Spurs suffered another injury blow when Cristian Romero was forced off while City lost Savinho, taken away on a stretcher after an awkward fall. On came the 19-year-old Jacob Wright.
Spurs would lose Werner to a groin strain and they had to deal with the knowledge that they ought to have been out of sight; one flash from City could ruin it all. Wright almost provided it. He took an assured touch on the edge of the area and bent his shot inches past the post.