Spurs in a Wycombe wonderland
Written By: Robert Halter
The magic of the F.A. Cup drew League Two side Wycombe Wanderers away to Tottenham Hotspur in the fourth round, towards the end of January. In the opening exchanges, the Chair boys started on the front foot from a ball over by Sido Jombati and a knock on from Adebayo Akinfenwa before the Spurs crossbar was rattled by the Blues captain, Paul Hayes. On seven minutes from a goal kick by Jamal Blackman, a header from Akinfenwa was kept out by Lilywhites stand in keeper, Michel Vorm. Then in the fourteenth minute, from Luke O’ Nien’s through ball, a lob by Sam Wood, drifted over Vorm but past the far post. But on the nineteenth minute, after Blackman dropped a clanger, an alert Heung-Min Son, drove a shot narrowly past the right post. An instant response by the Wanderers resulted in Anthony Stewart’s header being saved by Vorm from a Joe Jacobson cross. The visitors responded again, when from a knock on by Akinfenwa through an over the top ball by Wood, a fierce shot by Hayes was turned behind by Vorm, and from the resulting corner by Jacobson, a poor header out by Josh Onomah, was met clean on the volley by Hayes, into the top right corner, to give the underdogs the lead on twenty three minutes. In the next minute, Onomah tried to make amends but his low strike in the box was kept out by Blackman. But on twenty seven minutes, Moussa Sissoko latched onto a mistake by Blackman, and Hayes averted the danger by clearing the ball off the line, after Son turned provider. Sissoko then returned the favour, as Son’s stinging right footed strike was fended away by Blackman. In the thirty fourth minute, from a through ball by Cameron Carter-Vickers, a blast at goal by Son, flew over. But in the next minute, Tottenham conceded a penalty after Carter-Vickers pushed Wood in the box and Hayes converted the spot kick by turning the ball past Vorm, into the centre of the goal, for a surprise two nil advantage to the Wanderers. The Chair boys threatened again instantly, after Wood had been appended by Onomah, and a long kick by Jamal floated into the area, before Akinfenwa, guided a header wide. Before the re-start, Vincent Janssen replaced Nkoudou. In the forty ninth minute, from an incisive pass by Sissoko, a snatched shot by Son, went over. Two minutes on, after a pass by Kevin Wimmer, an alert Anthony Stewart, deflected away Son’s close range effort. On fifty nine minutes Onomah’s low drive took a deflection off Aaron Pierre, and from Son’s corner, a headed pass by Cameron-Vickers went back out to Son, who drifted into the box and drilled the ball into the bottom left corner. The Lilywhites then replaced Wimmer with Mousa Dembele and Onomah with Dele Alli. In the sixty third minute, Vorm made a comfortable stop from Sido Jomabti’s low shot, through the work rate of Akinfenwa. But Spurs drew level, after Pierre elbowed Janssen, who gained revenge by firing his spot kick into the bottom right corner, in the sixty fourth minute. Then moments later, Wood missed a gilt edged chance, after a miss placed header by Winks. Soon Wycombe took off Akinfenwa for Myles Weston. But under the threat of Weston, a nasty fall by Trippier, meant Spurs, who had used up all their subs went down to ten men. The Blues then replaced Hayes with Garry Thompson and Sam Saunders took over from Scott Kashket. But Wycombe regained the advantage on eighty four minutes, as a delivery on the left by Weston, was met with a perfectly timed header by Thompson, into the far corner. But once again Spurs equalised, when Jamal’s poor kick out, was headed back by Dembele into the path of Alli, who placed the ball into the centre of the net. A reaction save by Blackman, kept out a bullet header from Janssen in stoppage time, after Sissoko pinged the ball across from the right. But incredibly Son won the tie at the end, after Winks and Janssen combined for Son, who charged through, as his strike cannoned off Jacobson into the roof of the net to seal a 4-3 victory for Spurs in dramatic fashion.