Timo Werner missed Tottenham’s Carabao Cup quarter-final tie with Manchester United
Tottenham Hotspur secured a 4-3 win over Manchester United in what turned out to be an entertaining Carabao Cup clash at the Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday evening.
Ange Postecoglou’s side are now in the semi-finals of the cup competition and will face holders Liverpool in a two-legged tie next year. They had a three-goal lead in the second half, but catastrophic errors from goalkeeper Fraser Forster saw Man United claw their way back into the game via goals from substitutes Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo.
Son Heung-min made it 4-2 with a goal from a corner kick, and while United scored again in the stoppage time, it was not enough as Spurs prevailed 4-3 in the end.
-> Tottenham face daunting Liverpool challenge in Carabao cup semi-final opponent
Due to suspension and injuries to several first-team players, Ange Postecoglou had a very weak bench in midweek. His squad included two goalkeepers, a few kids, Sergio Reguilon, Brennan Johnson and Lucas Bergvall.
Timo Werner was mysteriously absent from the squad that faced Ruben Amorim’s side in the Carabao Cup. Everything points towards the forward being dropped entirely from the squad after Ange Postecoglou branded his performance ‘unacceptable’ in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw with Rangers at the Ibrox in the Europa League. He had also failed to make any kind of impact after coming off the bench late in the second half in the 5-0 away win at Southampton on Sunday.
So, perhaps there were reasons for the Tottenham gaffer to not involve him in the cup tie with United. However, when asked by the media why Timo Werner missed the game, Postecoglou stated (h/t Football London):
“Yeah, he was sick, mate, it’s just the way we’re going, it’s just like he woke up this morning with a fever and the doc went and saw him, he had a high fever and we had to rule him out unfortunately, so it’s just the way things are.”
It has just been that kind of season for the Lilywhites. Injuries, illnesses and suspension have decimated the squad and hampered Spurs’ progress in Big Ange’s second season at the helm. This has led to incredibly inconsistent performances since the start of the campaign, leaving the team in mid-table in the league.
As for Werner, he has failed to significantly make an impact since returning to the North London outfit on loan in June, starting only three Premier League games. He has been involved in 20 games across all competitions, contributing just one goal and three assists to date. The frustration of many of the Tottenham fans has been the wastefulness of the Germany international in front of goal, which was evident during his time at Chelsea.
More Tottenham Hotspur News:
- Tottenham in three-way transfer battle as Conte plans to sign Spurs target this summer
- Not Toney – Tottenham put off by €50m asking price for striker whose contract expires in less than 12 months
- Tottenham now in position to hijack Chelsea deal for Serie A ace
The 28-year-old’s performance against Rangers was not good enough and he was rightly hooked at half time. If he recovers from illness in time, Werner should find himself on the bench against Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.
