MANCHESTER UTD (2) vs TOTTENHAM (0)
DARRON GIBSON was the unlikely hero as holders Manchester United once again broke Tottenham hearts to reach the semi-final of the Carling Cup.
Midfielder Gibson netted with two spectacular first-half strikes as Harry Redknapp’s Spurs again finished second best in a re-run of last year’s Wembley final.
The Irishman opened the scoring with a fine 25-yard strike across goal on 16 minutes before doubling the lead with a curling effort into the top corner seven minutes before half-time, following an exchange of passes with Danny Welbeck.
Spurs, the 2008 champions, had their chances to force a replay but efforts from Jermain Defoe and David Bentley were denied by a combination of keeper Tomas Kuszczak and young Belgian full-back Ritchie De Laet, although, in truth, they went down tamely.
In the end, it was a performance to delight boss Sir Alex Ferguson, whose faith in his second string side was restored after the home Champions League defeat to Besiktas last week.
Of Gibson, he said: “He did well. The second goal particularly, the movement and working off the ball was good, and a terrific finish.
“Gibson and Anderson did very well in the middle of the park. We’re two games from Wembley, that’s good. We’ll enjoy the semi-final and these lads will play again.”
Spurs boss Redknapp may have his priorities set on a top four place in the Premier League, but admitted he was still disappointed to lose out on a third successive Carling Cup final place after a lethargic encounter.
“You’re never going to get a better opportunity than we did tonight,” Redknapp said. “We’ve been playing so well recently but there was no atmosphere tonight.
“It was played at a lethargic pace; we didn’t make a tackle in the first half. It was like a practice match, it just never got going.”
