Deadly Defoe eliminates Leeds
Reuters - Wednesday 03 February 2010, 21:52
A hat-trick by Jermain Defoe sent
Tottenham Hotspur into the fifth round of the FA Cup on
Wednesday as the Premier League side beat League One Leeds 3-1
away in a pulsating fourth-round replay.
Leeds, going well in the third tier of English football, had
knocked out Manchester United at Old Trafford in the previous
round and snatched a 2-2 White Hart Lane draw in the original
game.
But the run of upsets that have been a feature of the
competition so far this season came to an end as the
full-strength Londoners dominated from the start, weathered a
brief Leeds comeback before deservedly advancing to an away tie
with Bolton Wanderers on the weekend of February 13/14.
Spurs flew out of the blocks but Defoe, via a combination of
poor finishing and good goalkeeping by Casper Ankergren, wasted
half a dozen chances.
The England striker finally found the target after 37
minutes when he collected a low David Bentley cross, spun and
completely miskicked a half-volley that looped beyond Ankergren.
The goal spurred Leeds into their most impressive spell of
the game and in stoppage time they equalised when Jermaine
Beckford's hooked volley was parried by Heurelho Gomes with
Luciano Becchio on hand to slide in the rebound.
Spurs continued to make most of the running in a high-octane
second half but Ankergren made several more good saves and when
he was beaten again by Defoe after 68 minutes the goal was ruled
out for offside.
Five minutes later though Defoe was on hand again to turn in
a fizzing cross from the impressive Bentley.
Unlike in the last game, when Beckford equalised with a
stoppage-time penalty, Spurs kept their cool, and as Leeds threw
everything forward at the death Defoe broke clear to tuck in his
third of the night and 20th of the season.
NEWS: Redknapp - Defoe should have scored six
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