29 August 2023 , 21:10
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Ange Postecoglou needs to wake up and smell the coffee – Tottenham are already in the last chance saloon to win a trophy this season.
They were lucky to survive 90 minutes in which Fulham – with head coach Marco Silva consigned to the naughty step – were demonstrably the better side. Davinson Sanchez was the fall-guy in the shoot-out, meaning Spurs are now down to the FA Cup for a realistic shot at silverware. And we're not even out of August yet.
Now on their eighth permanent boss since Juande Ramos delivered the last trophy on White Hart Lane 15 years ago, Postecoglou made nine changes and Spurs stank the place out. Do you want to win a trophy or keep your big guns fresh for a trip to Burnley, Ange?
Justice was done when Kenny Tete, who had needed to make an urgent pit-stop in the dressing room to fetch a new boot, stroked home the winning spot-kick with his replacement footwear. On the day their record goalscorer Harry Kane was pictured in Bavarian lederhosen, toasting his new culture at Bayern Munich with a pint of frothy nectar, Spurs unveiled their ghastly 'taupe haze' third kit.
If your mid-morning coffee is disappointingly insipid, you'll know where Tottenham's commercial department got the idea for their latest fashion statement. Taupe haze? What a latte rubbish. The cappuccino strip is not easy to pick out in your peripheral vision, and Spurs' strangers in the night misplaced too many passes for them all to be attributable to plain incompetence.
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Rodrigo Muniz had already headed wide from Antonee Robinson's cross when Fulham – full of beans from the outset – went in front. Skipper Tom Cairney's twisting run was too much for Sanchez and his low cross was turned in by Micky Van de Ven for the Dutchman's second goal of the season - both at the wrong end.
With chairman Daniel Levy sat just yards away on the Craven Cottage balcony, the early setback sent 6,000 travelling missionaries from north London into instant revolt. “We want Levy out,” they chanted – and for 45 minutes, it was the only co-ordination Tottenham could muster, on or off the pitch.
Tottenham were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Fulham (Getty Images)Former England keeper Fraser Forster kept Spurs in business with two nimble saves to deny Muniz before the break. Postecoglou responded to the half-baked hogwash by withdrawing the invisible Giovanni Lo Celso at the interval, and Tottenham responded to the boos from the Putney end with an equalise within 11 minutes of the changeover.
With Fulham defender Tete off the field because his boot had split and he was locating a replacement in the dressing room, Ivan Perisic found ample space to pick out Richarlison at the far post. The Brazilian striker's header was only his fourth goal in 12 months for Tottenham, but their relief should have been short-lived, Bobby De Cordova-Reid shanking horribly wide from 12 yards.
However, Fulham were the ones who claimed bragging rights in the end to secure their place in the third round, with a 5-3 win in the penalty shootout.