Tottenham Hotspur suffered a disappointing 4-0 defeat at Anfield in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg – “they were too good for us”, says manager Ange Postecoglou.
Tottenham Hotspur suffer semi-final defeat at the hands of Liverpool
Tottenham Hotspur suffered a painful 4-0 loss at the hands of Liverpool in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Coming into the game, Spurs had a slender 1-0 advantage, it was clear that another clean sheet or a draw at Anfield would have been enough for the Lilywhites to book a place at Anfield.
However, this was not to be the case, as goals from Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Virgil Van Dijk saw the Merseyside club overcome Spurs’ 1-0 deficit to win 4-1 on aggregate.
Spurs who have not featured in the Carabao Cup final in the last four years, have now crashed out, further extending their wait for Silverware.
Ange Postecoglou provides a brutal assessment of his side’s semi-final exit
Without a doubt, this defeat was a bitter one for Spurs as the club where just ninety minutes away from a trip to Wembley.
Manager Ange Postecoglou who was without eight first-team players, watched on as his stretched Tottenham Hotspur squad where run over by an in-form Liverpool team.
Speaking after the game, the Tottenham boss told BBC Sport: “Liverpool were too good for us tonight. We didn’t get into the game in the way we wanted to. We allowed them to get control of it.
“When they get into a rhythm, we didn’t give ourselves an opportunity to get a foothold in the game.
“We were way too passive in terms of our football with and without the ball. I think it is a lesson there for us. We cannot shy away from the football that we want to play.”
Speaking to SkySports (Main Event 06/02/25 – 22:12), he continued with his assessment on the game: “I guess that Liverpool deserved the victory. They were the far better team – we were not able to get a grip of the game.
“They were too good for us. We allowed them to get into the game and we were not as aggressive as we needed to be. We didn’t get the game started off in the right footing.
“It was very difficult for us to wrestle that control back. We definitely needed to be braver with and without the ball. They’re a very good Liverpool team in a good spell of form and they’re very settled.”
On the second half: “We knew the first 20 minutes we had to keep it solid in terms of our decision making and to give them a second goal is disappointing. We never got to grips with any part of the game.”
On feeling lonely: “No, it is not an emotion I feel. I am disappointed that we didn’t give a good account of ourselves.”
On players’ reaction: “Very disappointed. We had a great opportunity, but unfortunately we didn’t grab it.”
What next for Tottenham Hotspur and manager Ange Postecoglou
Before the game, this week was seen as pivotal for Spurs. The Lilywhites were set to play two cup games, one in the Carabao Cup and another in the FA Cup.
The feeling was that the results of these games would decide the future of the manager who promised to deliver a trophy in his second season.
When asked about his second-season trophy chances, he said: “We have given up a good opportunity tonight and we cannot shy away from that. We were in a good position to get to the final. Nobody needs to pick me up, I just need to pick up the players.”