Written by Matt Brown
Tottenham are comfortably through to the third round of the Carabao Cup after beating Championship side Charlton Athletic 5-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday night.
Both sides made changes, but it was somewhat surprising that Nathan Jones opted to make 10 adjustments to the side that had beaten West Ham on Saturday. The only player retained was summer signing Billy Koumetio, a centre-back who had impressed for the Addicks since his move from Dundee.
The visitors were well supported in North London, with over 6,000 fans packing out the away end. Charlton started well with captain Greg Docherty forcing a good save from Antonin Kinsky before Nathan Asiimwe headed narrowly wide.
The visitors were forced into early changes when both centre-backs (Koumetio and Collins Sichenje) suffered injuries simultaneously, forcing Nathan Jones to shuffle his defense after just 12 minutes.
Tottenham struggled to break down the low block of the much-changed Addicks side, but Mikey Moore who has returned from his successful loan spell at Rangers was a constant threat. He was eventually rewarded four minutes before the break when his brilliant run and powerful shot slipped through the palms of debutant keeper Tiernan Brooks.
The home side didn’t have long to wait for their second goal of the night. Moore was involved once again, working hard to get the ball into the box before a poor clearance attempt from Timothy Ouma dropped to Dominic Solanke, who drilled the ball into the back of the net.
Despite the hosts taking a 2-0 lead into halftime, the tie still felt open. Charlton struggled at the start of the second half, unable to retain possession, though Spurs couldn’t extend their lead as quickly as they might have hoped.
Both sides made substitutions just after the hour mark. Tottenham were awarded a free-kick shortly after, which Mateus Fernandes whipped into the box to find the head of substitute Kevin Danso, who scored with his very first touch. Danso had to leave the pitch briefly after scoring, having suffered a gash to his eyebrow from winning the header to score.
Soon after, new Tottenham signing Sávio made his debut off the bench following his £85m move from Manchester City, quickly asserting control over the game. Mathys Tel who had a mixed night, came close to adding a fourth goal only to be denied by Brooks from close range. At the other end, Miles Leaburn forced Kinsky into a solid save.
With 11 minutes remaining, Sávio showed Spurs fans why the club paid big money for him, dancing around the Charlton defense before scoring from just inside the box. The Brazilian’s effort nestled into the bottom corner past Brooks, effectively sealing the win for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.
Three minutes later, Spurs added a fifth. Sávio was involved once more, setting up Welshman Ben Davies—though it likely would have been a second goal for the Brazilian had it not deflected off his teammate.
Charlton refused to go home quietly, however, in the 87th minute, they earned a consolation but deserved goal when defender Lloyd Jones rose highest to head in from a corner. It was Jones’s third goal in three games this season which gave the travelling supporters something to cheer about.
Following the final whistle, Tottenham were drawn away to fellow Premier League side Liverpool in the next round. But before that, they will turn their attention to a home clash against Newcastle in the league on Saturday.
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