TRUST Tottenham to serve up a car crash of a performance in this week of all weeks.
Spurs announced on Tuesday a 15-year “strategic partnership” with Formula One, a tie-up which would see them build London’s longest indoor electric go-kart track beneath the South Stand.
It raised a few eyebrows among fans, who will likely be appeased if it end up helping their team’s drive for success on the pitch.
Yet now, thanks to sub Iliman Ndiaye’s fine, late solo goal, their side are out of the race for their most likely route to silverware for another season.
It was no more than Spurs deserved, who were poor throughout against what was effectively Sheffield United’s reserve side.
They rarely threatened, even when Harry Kane came on midway through the second half – though the England skipper did fluff his line with an injury-time header.
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Both these sides were missing their managers from the dugout.
Antonio Conte was still back in Turin recovering from gallbladder surgery, with his assistant Cristian Stellini once again deputising.
The Tottenham chief is expected to return this week, though possibly not until Sunday, the day after his side’s trip to Wolves.
While Blades chief Paul Heckingbottom was serving the first of a three-match ban given for volleying the fourth official’s board out of his hands in fury during last month’s home defeat to Middlesbrough.
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Spurs sprang a few surprises with their team selection.
Richarlison started through the middle, despite Stellini hinting in the pre-match press conference that he would not, while Kane did not start at all, despite Stellini hinting he would.
In-form Emerson Royal was also ruled out with a minor knee injury – though he should be fine for Wolves on Saturday – meaning deadline-day signing Pedro Porro came in.
Sheffield United’s focus was clearly more on promotion to the Premier League, which was understandable given their seven-point cushion to third spot in the Championship.
With a trip to rivals Blackburn to come on Saturday lunchtime, Paul Heckingbottom opted to leave big-hitters including Sander Berge, Iliman Ndiaye and Oli McBurnie on the bench.
Instead, academy lad Andre Brooks was handed his first start.
But it was the 19-year-old’s loose pass which handed Spurs their first chance of the game.
It went straight to the lesser-spotted Lucas Moura, who dribbled into the box and cut it back for Richarlison, but the ex-Everton man’s effort was blocked by Jack Robinson.
Porro suffered a Spurs debut to forget in the 4-1 lashing at Leicester last month, having signed on loan from Sporting Lisbon with an obligation to buy for £45million.
You feared how the Spaniard might cope in the wind and driving rain against a canny, Championship side like United.
But he showed some neat touches, an intent to get forward and when he was cleaned out by Robinson’s firm-but-fair challenge, encouragingly, he just got up and got on with it.
Davinson Sanchez was playing behind him and it was the Colombian who teed up Richarlison for Spurs’ best chance of the half.
Brazil’s No9 beat the offside trap to race in down the right-hand side of the box, but smashed his shot from an acute angle over the bar.
Moura then clipped the top of the crossbar when standing the ball up to the back post, looking for his compatriot Richarlison, causing the home fans to breathe a sigh of relief.
That was then exactly what Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was doing when his weak header let in Ismaila Coulibaly.
Fortunately for Spurs, the Malian shanked his shot into the side netting, blowing the best chance of the half.
But after a run of games WITHOUT individual errors cropping up, Conte will have been worried to see bad, old habits creeping back in as he watched on from his sofa.
There was no VAR at this game and lucky for George Baldock, as the Blades right-back caught Ivan Perisic on the shin with a nasty tackle but got away with it.
He was not so fortunate soon after the break when hacking down Son Heung-min and was booked, and the same fate awaited Pape Matar Sarr for a late challenge on Tommy Doyle.
Things were not going well for Richarlison, who fired a shot so far wide it got the ‘What the bleeping hell was that’ treatment, before his attempted cross deflected back off him for a goal-kick.
His frustrating night was brought to an end seconds later as Kane entered the fray.
But the England captain’s introduction made little difference to Tottenham’s toothless attack and the home side grew in belief.
They brought on their own star striker in Ndiaye and with ten minutes to go, he made the difference.
In a match that was the football equivalent of go-karting, he provided the one moment of Formula One-esque quality, weaving through a crowd of Spurs defenders in the opposition penalty box before burying it in at Fraser Forster’s near post.
Heckingbottom, wearing his ear buds, applauded from up in the stands.
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Conte no doubt will have been screaming at the TV back home, frustrated that his side were not at the races once again in what has been an infuriatingly inconsistent season.
The Blades shocked Spurs with a 1-0 victory at Bramall Lane that led them to the competition’s quarter-finals thanks to Iliman Ndiaye’s winner on 79 minutes.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
