No Kane, no problem

Eriksen picks up slack with double at depleted Swansea to send Spurs into FA Cup semis

Tottenham's Christian Eriksen scoring the opening goal in the 3-0 FA Cup quarter-final win at Swansea's Liberty Stadium yesterday. Spurs will play the semi-final at their temporary home of Wembley next month.
Tottenham's Christian Eriksen scoring the opening goal in the 3-0 FA Cup quarter-final win at Swansea's Liberty Stadium yesterday. Spurs will play the semi-final at their temporary home of Wembley next month. PHOTO: REUTERS

LONDON • On days like this, there is no need for Tottenham Hotspur to worry about how they will cope without the injured Harry Kane.

Christian Eriksen demonstrated why he is much more than a member of the supporting cast as he scored another two goals yesterday to ease Spurs into the FA Cup semi-finals at the expense of a Swansea side that never turned up.

It was that sort of afternoon for Spurs, who were as comfortable as it gets as they strolled into the last four for the second year in a row after a 3-0 away win yesterday.

In a post-match interview with BBC Sport, Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino expressed his delight with his team's strength in depth.

"It was a very good performance. I'm very happy and very pleased. Now, Wembley for the semi-final," he said. "We fully deserved the victory. We are in the semi-final because we deserve it...

"If you have watched the last three games, we won with a different starting XI and now today too. What is important is that everyone is available to play and the team is not affected by the names."

  • ENGLISH FA CUP Q-FINALS

    YESTERDAY

    Swansea 0 Tottenham 3

    Man United 2 Brighton 0

    TODAY

    Wigan v Southampton

    Singtel TV Ch109 & Mediacorp okto, 9.20pm

    Leicester v Chelsea

    Ch109, tomorrow, 12.20am


    ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

    YESTERDAY

    Stoke 1 Everton 2

    Huddersfield 0 Crystal Palace 2

    Bournemouth 2 West Brom 1

    Liverpool 5 Watford 0

Eriksen yesterday scored his seventh and eighth goals in 10 matches to take his overall tally for the season to 11. Erik Lamela effortlessly stroked home Spurs' second in between.

And while Spurs can now look forward to a semi-final at their temporary home of Wembley next month, Swansea's focus must return to the grind of trying to preserve their Premier League status.

This was only their third defeat in 17 games since Carlos Carvalhal was appointed as manager, but it was a chastening experience for a depleted Swansea making their first FA Cup quarter-final since 1964.

It was embarrassingly one-sided at times and the only surprise was that Spurs took until the stroke of half-time to double their lead.

After Eriksen's 11th-minute opener, Son Heung Min, leading the line in the absence of Kane, then had a goal ruled out for offside following the intervention of the video assistant referee (VAR).

But it was only a matter of time before a second goal came for the visitors when Lamela was given time and space to pick his spot.

Pochettino's men continued to pour forward after the break, and Swansea goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeldt could do nothing to prevent Eriksen from drilling home his second from the edge of the area.

Spurs are seeking a first trophy since the 2008 League Cup, with their hopes of a first FA Cup since 1991 very much alive.

THE GUARDIAN

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on March 18, 2018, with the headline No Kane, no problem. Subscribe