London: Tottenham Hotspur gained sweet revenge over north London rivals Arsenal as goals in each half by Son Heung-min and Dele Alli earned them a 2-0 win Wednesday and a League Cup semifinal place.
Seventeen days after losing 2-4 in a pulsating Premier League clash, in-form Tottenham returned to the Emirates to claim a first away victory over Arsenal in eight years and set up a two-legged semi against Chelsea.
Son opened the scoring against the run of play with a stylish 20th-minute effort from Alli’s pass and the latter doubled Tottenham’s lead with a delightful dinked finish on the hour mark.
Spurs took a step towards a first trophy under Manchester United target Mauricio Pochettino. “It’s a big derby, last time we were here we didn’t have a great result and this is a special night,” Son said.
Arsenal had gone 22 matches unbeaten in all competitions under new manager Unai Emery until Sunday’s league defeat at Southampton and a second loss in four days was a bitter pill to swallow.
The hosts played well in patches but were guilty of wasting several chances, especially before the break. Tottenham keeper Paulo Gazzaniga, in for rested Hugo Lloris, was also inspired when he needed to be, clawing an Aaron Ramsey volley on to the post just before half time.
The Argentine was first Spurs goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet away at Arsenal in any competition since November, 1998.
Tottenham took the lead in the 24th minute when a long punt forward was flicked on to Alli, who showed great vision to set Son racing clear and the South Korean calmly curled past Cech.
Arsenal introduced French striker Alexandre Lacazette just before the hour mark but it was Harry Kane, who came off the bench at the same time for Spurs, who made an immediate impact.
Kane chested down a high ball and his lofted pass released Alli. His first touch was sublime and his second lifted the ball over the advancing Cech to double Tottenham’s lead.
Alli hit by bottle
London: Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli was struck on the head by a bottle at Arsenal during their League Cup victory, Wednesday. The plastic bottle was hurled from the stands at the Emirates Stadium about 12 minutes after Alli scored the second goal. Alli responded by goading the Arsenal fans, holding up two fingers to signal Tottenham’s 2-0 lead in the quarterfinal. Police in helmets were also brought into the stands at the Emirates Stadium to provide a larger barrier between Tottenham and Arsenal fans.
