Tottenham Hotspur vs. Nottingham Forest: Score, Grades and Post-Match Reaction

Ryan Mason, Roberto Soldado and Harry Kane scored in the final 20 minutes as Tottenham Hotspur came from behind to defeat visiting Nottingham Forest 3-1 on Wednesday night in a Capital One Cup third-round match at White Hart Lane.

Spurs had trailed to Jorge Grant's opener as Forest, currently atop the Championship table, looked to pull off an upset against their Premier League-based hosts.

But Mason pulled the home side level with his first goal for Spurs, an outstanding long-distance effort, before Soldado grabbed the winner in the 83rd minute.

With Forest pushing for a late equaliser, Kane scored Tottenham's third in stoppage time.

The win sends Spurs into the fourth round, where they will play Brighton and Hove Albion. Forest, meanwhile, will leave White Hart Lane disappointed after matching their hosts for more than an hour and taking a second-half lead.

But the match changed with the introduction of Mason and Kane as second-half substitutes, and although Spurs largely failed to play their best football, Mauricio Pochettino's side will now head into this weekend's Premier League match with rivals Arsenal full of renewed confidence.

Forest goalkeeper Dorus De Vries made the game's first save in the 12th minute, stopping Jan Vertonghen's deflected effort. Ten minutes later, Spurs had a penalty shout as Danny Fox tugged Paulinho to the ground in the box. Referee Andre Marriner allowed play to continue, though, leaving the home side frustrated.

Nottingham Forest came close to opening the scoring in the 23rd minute as Ben Osborn weaved through Tottenham's box before smacking his shot off the underside of the bar. The rebound fell to David Vaughan, whose shot was saved by Michel Vorm.

Spurs responded through Andros Townsend, who shot just wide of the post from long distance in the 28th minute. Eleven minutes later, Federico Fazio blasted narrowly over from 30 yards after carrying the ball out from Tottenham's defence.

After the break, Tottenham created their best chance yet in the 56th minute. Ben Davies swung in a cross from the left, and Paulinho redirected the ball just wide of the far post with an outstretched leg. 

Forest followed with their best spell of extended pressure so far. And in the 61st minute, the visitors took the lead.

The move started with Lars Veldwijk, whose cross from the left was deflected into the goalmouth by Stephen McLaughlin. Grant, unmarked, finished from six yards to put Forest ahead 1-0.

Tottenham made a pair of changes quickly, introducing Kane and Mason for Paulinho and Benjamin Stambouli. Kane quickly tested De Vries, finding space between two Forest defenders before heading Davies cross at the goalkeeper in the 71st minute.

Lefteris Pitarakis/Associated Press

One minute later, the hosts were level as the other substitute made an instant impact.

Accepting a pass from Davies 35 yards from goal, Mason picked his spot and curled a wonderful shot past De Vries for the equaliser in the 72nd minute.

The goal seemed to awaken the home side. Townsend hit the crossbar with a free-kick in the 76th minute, and Mason missed the target with another long-distance effort a minute later.

As Spurs continued to improve, a goal appeared increasingly inevitable. And with seven minutes left, Soldado obliged.

Townsend set up the chance, sending a hard cross-shot into the box. Lurking in a yard of space in the centre of the box, Soldado redirected the ball high into the net with his first touch.

The turnaround was then complete, as was Soldado's night. The Spaniard was withdrawn for Erik Lamela in the 85th minute, and within moments of the change, Spurs scored again.

Once again, the substitutes created the goal. Mason played a pass to Lamela, who slipped a final ball through to Kane. Unmarked on his run into the box, Kane took a touch before finishing in the bottom corner at the far post to seal Spurs' comeback victory.

Grades

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Michel Vorm	6.4
Kyle Naughton	8.0
Federico Fazio	8.3
Jan Vertonghen	7.0
Ben Davies	7.4
Benjamin Stambouli	6.8
Nabil Bentaleb	7.1
Aaron Lennon	6.9
Paulinho	6.7
Andros Townsend	8.1
Roberto Soldado	7.2
Harry Kane (for Paulinho, 64')	7.8
Ryan Mason (for Stambouli, 65')	8.2
Erik Lamela (for Soldado, 85')	7.3

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Dorus De Vries	5.8
Daniel Harding	6.3
Jamaal Lascelles	6.7
Kelvin Wilson	6.4
Daniel Fox	7.2
Jamie Paterson	6.2
Jorge Grant	7.0
Ben Osborn	7.3
David Vaughan	6.2
Stephen McLaughlin	6.2
Lars Veldwijk	6.7
Robert Tesche (for Vaughan, 45')	6.1
Dexter Blackstock (for Veldwijk, 74')	6.1
Oliver Burke (for Grant, 86')	6.0

Post-Match Reaction