Tottenham Dominates Charlton 5-1 as Savio Shines on Debut
Tottenham Hotspur swept aside Charlton Athletic 5-1 to shake off their recent Premier League frustration and march into the next round, with new signing Savio delivering a dazzling late cameo.
Charlton’s night unravelled almost immediately. Within the first quarter of an hour, the visitors lost both Collins Sichenje and Billy Koumetio to injury, ripping the heart out of their defence and leaving them scrambling for shape.
Even then, they clung on. Goalkeeper Tiernan Brooks kept them in it with a sharp stop from Archie Gray, briefly quietening a restless home crowd. But the pressure kept building, and eventually the dam broke.
Four minutes before half-time, Mikey Moore finally smashed Tottenham in front, his fierce strike bursting through Brooks’ hands for the opener. Charlton barely had time to reset. Dominic Solanke struck again before the interval, finishing smartly to double the lead and turn control into dominance.
Tottenham came out after the break intent on killing the tie. They did it almost immediately. Kevin Danso, on with fresh legs, met a Mateus Fernandes free-kick with his very first touch, powering in a header that made it 3-0 and ended any faint Charlton resistance.
From there, it became an exhibition.
Savio’s introduction on 71 minutes lit up the closing stages. The winger needed only 11 minutes to mark his debut in style, cutting inside and drilling a precise finish into the bottom corner for Tottenham’s fourth. Charlton were reeling, and Savio was not done.
Three minutes later he twisted again inside the area, this time bundling a scruffy effort goalwards. The ball took a deflection off Ben Davies and went in for the fifth, the kind of chaotic strike that summed up Charlton’s misery and Tottenham’s complete control.
Charlton did at least leave with something to show for their efforts. In the 87th minute, defender Lloyd Jones rose highest at a corner and headed in a consolation goal, denying Tottenham the clean sheet but doing little to dent the mood inside the stadium.
For Roberto De Zerbi, this was exactly the response he needed. After a disjointed start to the domestic campaign, a commanding win, five different contributions in attack and a dream debut from Savio offered a timely surge of confidence.
Everton ease past Preston as Barry hits hat-trick
At Deepdale, Everton enjoyed a similarly comfortable night, brushing aside Preston North End 4-0.
Thierno Barry stole the show with a superb hat-trick, ruthlessly finishing off a series of flowing moves to put the tie well beyond Preston. Brennan Johnson added his first goal for the club to round off the scoring, another positive note in a one-sided contest.
With the game wrapped up early, David Moyes used the margin to his advantage, withdrawing several key players in the closing stages and banking valuable rest ahead of tougher tests to come.
Newcastle edge five-goal thriller against West Brom
Newcastle United had a very different kind of evening, forced to scrap for a 3-2 victory over West Bromwich Albion in a breathless contest.
Bazoumana Toure struck for the hosts and Harvey Barnes delivered a decisive double, giving Newcastle just enough of a cushion to withstand West Brom’s fightback. Isaac Price kept the visitors in touch with a well-taken free-kick, and a late penalty dragged the game to the brink.
Newcastle’s narrow lead survived thanks to Ewen Jaouen. As tension gripped the stadium, the goalkeeper flung himself to his right to claw away a Jayson Molumby free-kick, a crucial diving save that sealed progression and underlined the fine margins on a night when others cruised.
