Tottenham blast Arsenal, move to Carling Cup final

Tottenham ended more than eight years of failure against arch-rivals Arsenal in some style with a resounding 5-1 win at White Hart Lane to book a trip to Wembley in the Carling Cup final.  Not since November 1999 and through 21 previous encounters had Spurs fans been able to laud it over the Gunners.  But following this comprehensive victory against a mainly young Arsenal side which just could not cope with the tenacity of Jermaine Jenas and the pace of frontman Robbie Keane, Juande Ramos will be confident of landing a first trophy in his maiden season at the famous redeveloped venue next month.

Spurs should have put the tie beyond doubt after dominating the first leg at Emirates Stadium a fortnight ago but following a late goal from Theo Walcott, Arsenal still had it all to play for. However, despite adding experience in the form of captain William Gallas, Alex Hleb and, from the bench Cesc Fabregas and Togo frontman Emmanuel Adebayor, this proved one game too far for Arsene Wenger's emerging side, who nevertheless still have bigger prizes in their sights.

The tone was set for the evening when Spurs were off to a flyer inside the opening three minutes.  Dimitar Berbatov flicked the ball on to Jenas, who charged towards the edge of the area, before side-stepping Justin Hoyte. The England midfielder, watched by new national team coach Fabio Capello, then coolly dispatched a low angled strike in off the far post.

This now was set to be a real test of Arsenal's character.  Nicklas Bendtner had a half chance following some neat work around the right side of the Spurs box, but his well-struck effort flew just over.  However, the tie looked all but over after 26 minutes when Spurs moved 2-0 ahead.  Jenas sent in a deep free-kick from the left, which floated into the Arsenal six-yard box.  Michael Dawson jumped with Bendtner and the unfortunate Dane could only guide the ball past his own keeper.  The home fans had waited almost a decade for a taste of success over their bitter rivals and could now sense they were within touching distance of a return to Wembley.

Spurs continued to press and Berbatov dragged his shot against the base of Lukasz Fabianski's right-hand post when he really should have scored after the Bulgarian was put clean through by the busy Jenas.  Spurs, though, had been here before - they were 2-0 up in the first leg of last season's Carling Cup semi-final only to eventually surrender their home advantage and then bow out at Emirates Stadium. Arsenal almost found a lifeline when a near-post free-kick was headed goalwards by Bacary Sagna but Radek Cerny produced a fine one-handed reaction save to show just why he is keeping out England's number one Paul Robinson.

Abou Diaby cut inside and blazed a 25-yard effort just over as the Gunners aimed to make Spurs pay for their careless finishing.  The hosts, however, continued to look dangerous on the break as neither side looked ready to let up on the relentless tempo ahead of the half-time interval.  The next goal would be crucial - and it was Spurs who secured safe passage to Wembley two minutes after the restart.

Berbatov flicked the ball onto Aaron Lennon in the centre circle. His exquisite pass with the outside of the boot split the visitors' defence as Keane ran on into the box.  The Republic of Ireland striker sent a half-volley towards the bottom right corner from just inside the box, which bounced up in front of Fabianski and flew into the net.  Arsenal almost produced a swift reply but Bendtner saw his acrobatic effort hit the bar, before Fabregas, on for the injured Denilson in the first half, then smacked the rebound straight at Cerny.  Steed Malbranque had a great chance to make it four when he went racing clean through, but this time the young Pole stood his ground to make a decent save and quickly recovered the loose ball from under Berbatov's feet.

The Wembley chants began to ring out around White Hart Lane as the hour mark approached.  Their short journey across north London on February 24 was confirmed when Lennon got in on the overlap down the right from Keane's quick pass and slammed in a low drive through Fabianski's legs.  With the tie now safe, Ramos gave Berbatov and Keane a rest as Jermain Defoe and Kevin-Prince Boateng went on after 62 minutes.  Wenger took off the ineffective Walcott, introducing Adebayor while Croatian forward Eduardo replaced full-back Armand Traore.

The Togo frontman pulled one back with 20 minutes left, linking up with Eduardo to smash home a 16th goal of the season from the edge of the box - but this time Spurs would not be denied a long-awaited victory as Malbranque netted a fifth in stoppage time.  Arsenal players lost their cool at White Hart Lane on Tuesday night as Tottenham manager Juande Ramos hailed a 'perfect' performance after a resounding 5-1 victory secured a trip to Wembley in the Carling Cup final.  It has been more than eight years and some 21 encounters since Spurs last got the upper hand over their north-London rivals, but it was a thoroughly deserved victory and nothing more than their determined approached warranted.  After dominating the first leg at Emirates Stadium a fortnight ago, but only coming away with a 1-1 draw, the home side got off to the perfect start through Jermaine Jenas inside three minutes and never looked back.

Arsenal - with manager Arsene Wenger again fielding a young side, but one bolstered by the experience of captain William Gallas and, from the bench, Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor - just had no answer to the home side's midfield tenacity and pace in the final third.  Indeed, during the closing stages, with the tie already lost, skipper Gallas was seen to square up to young Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner, whom pictures also suggest had been involved in an altercation with team-mate Adebayor. Eventually, referee Howard Webb had to intervene to restore calm.

The night, though, belonged to Spurs, who revelled in defeating their old enemy en route to a first cup final since 2002 - and all in the opening few months of Ramos' reign.