Lucas Moura headed the winner as Tottenham beat Burnley at Turf Moor

Lucas Moura headed the winner as Tottenham beat Burnley at Turf Moor

Spurs overcame Burnley 1-0 at Turf Moor to reach the Carabao Cup quarter-finals. Substitute Lucas Moura scored the winning goal. It was a much-needed win for Spurs manager Nuno Espirito Santo, whose team had lost their previous two matches.

Moura, who came in in the first half to replace Bryan Gil, headed Emerson Royal’s pass into the ground and past Clarets goalkeeper Nick Pope.

Pope had just made a fantastic save from Giovani lo Celso. In the first half, captain Harry Kane had a couple of small changes, flicking wide after being played through by Lo Celso and volleying a corner over the crossbar.

After Moura’s opener, Burnley took the game to Spurs, but the visitors, who made six changes after their defeat at West Ham, held firm.

“Defensively we were spot on,” said Nuno. “It was tough, what we expected, but we played a good game, controlled the game, had good possession, and created chances.

“It was a deserved win. It is about managing all situations, we are in the competition and did our job in a very nice way so we must congratulate our players.”

On Saturday, the quarter-final draw will take place. Tottenham’s focus now shifts to Saturday’s Premier League match against Manchester United, while Burnley hosts Brentford on the same day.

We're into the quarter-finals of the @Carabao_Cup! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/5C40eoEwRx

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) October 27, 2021

Nuno Esprito Santo kept Harry Kane, Cristian Romero, Pierre-Emile Hjbjerg, Oliver Skipp, and Emerson Royal from the defeat at West Ham on Sunday, but Harry Winks and Dele Alli were left out totally.

Tottenham’s manager was asked if the latter pair will feature when United visit. “They are our players so anything is possible,” he said. “This is my answer. We continue to focus on getting the best out of each of our players. Dele is one of the cases we have to try and improve.”

Spurs were held back for the duration of the first period, with little possession and even fewer ideas. When Emerson swung the ball across from the right, Steven Bergwijn had the proper intention, but his volley became a humiliating miskick, much to the joy of the Burnley fans.

For the team that changed into any kind of gear, a quarter-final berth awaited. Spurs did so after the break, finally pushing the ball forward fast as Moura and Kane attempted – unsuccessfully – to sneak behind Ben Mee and the rest of the captain’s backline. This attracted Burnley’s interest. Erik Pieters sent the ball to Johann Berg Gudmundsson, who should have finished off Matej Vydra with a header, but Spurs escaped.

As the hour mark approached, it was impossible to recall if Nick Pope or Pierluigi Gollini had made a save, such as the lack of vigor in the game. When Kane feed Giovani Lo Celso his stabbing attempt, at last, had Pope requiring his reflexes to repel, a barely full Turf Moor raised the noise to inspire better fare.

Nuno made a proactive substitution of Son Heung-min and Tanguy Ndombele for Bergwijn and Skipp and Spurs scored, with Moura beating Pope. Burnley fought back, as Davinson Sánchez booted a cross away from Maxwel Cornet. Tottenham, on the other hand, was far pleased when the final whistle blew.