Leicester vs. Tottenham: Winners and Losers from FA Cup
Tottenham Hotspur comfortably dispensed of Leicester City by a 2-0 score on Wednesday in an FA Cup third-round replay contest.
Son Heung-Min and Nacer Chadli contributed a goal each for Spurs in the victory at the King Power Stadium. The match was the third in 10 days between the two sides. After a 2-2 draw in the original third-round match, Leicester downed Spurs 1-0 at White Hart Lane a week ago in the Premier League.
The win advanced Mauricio Pochettino's side to the fourth round of the competition, where it will visit League One side Colchester United on January 30.
The loss marked the second time in three years that the Foxes were knocked out of the FA Cup at this stage.
Here's a look at our winners and losers from Tottenham's 2-0 away triumph in the FA Cup.
Winner: Son Heung-Min
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Son Heung-Min delivered a fantastic performance up top for Spurs as they cruised into the fourth round of the FA Cup.
The South Korea international broke the deadlock in the 39th minute as he unleashed a shot from 20 yards away into the right side of the net.
With Tottenham in need of a second to close the game out, Son handed out an assist in the 66th minute to Nacer Chadli before the Belgian found the back of the net. Son received the ball from substitute Harry Kane and then sliced the ball through a pair of defenders in the direction of Chadli.
The goal was the first for Son since the December 28 win over Watford, and he recorded an assist for the first time since he handed out two against Monaco in the UEFA Europa League on December 10.
Loser: Ben Chilwell
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Ben Chilwell learned a lesson in defending the hard way in the 39th minute as he handed Son too much time to step into his shot before striking the back of the goal.
Instead of pressuring the Tottenham forward, Chilwell kept his distance from Son in anticipation of a cut inside from the right wing. The bad read from the 19-year-old put the Foxes behind by a goal six minutes before half-time.
Chilwell improved a bit over the final 45 minutes of the match, but his mistake in marking Son still cost the Foxes a chance to advance further in the competition.
The loss also hurt the stock of Chilwell and other young players at Leicester. Instead of earning valuable playing time in a cup competition, they will have to play at the lower levels for the club while the first team chases the Premier League title with experienced players in the squad.
Winner: Nacer Chadli
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Nacer Chadli finished off Tottenham's dominant performance with a strike into the bottom-right part of the net in the 66th minute.
The Belgium international benefited from strong buildup play outside of the penalty area by Kane and Son on his first strike since August 15.
Outside of the goal, Chadli had a solid match in the final third as Spurs attempted to break down the Leicester back line through the flanks.
If Chadli uses his goal from Wednesday to spark his confidence moving forward, Pochettino will have a reliable option in reserve to count on later in the season.
Loser: Claudio Ranieri
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Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri has rarely made any bad decisions during his first season in charge of the Foxes, but his game plan for Wednesday's third-round replay was a bit baffling.
The Foxes let Spurs control the possession battle for most of the match and only put pressure on the Tottenham back line halfway through the second half.
By allowing Tottenham to gain confidence and break down his team's defense, Ranieri put the Foxes at a disadvantage from the first whistle. In addition to that, Ranieri brought on Jamie Vardy too late for the forward to fully get involved and become a threat up top.
Although Wednesday's poor game plan is a rare black eye on Ranieri's resume this season, all will be forgotten if the Foxes channel all their focus into the league title race and finish in the top four.
Winner: Kyle Walker
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Kyle Walker turned in a performance worthy of the captain's armband on Wednesday night as he provided Spurs with a constant threat in attack and failed to make any errors in defense.
For the majority of the first half, Walker surged into the final third in an attempt to pick out teammates in the box with crosses. Because of the space he was given by the Leicester defense, Walker was present on the right wing in the Leicester half of the field more than his own.
When Leicester tried to find space in the Spurs back four, they came up empty on plenty of occasions because of the solid positioning of Walker and the rest of the back line.
The professional showing from Walker gave Spurs confidence that they can rely on some of their role players to shoulder the load and make a deep run in the FA Cup while the stars rest up for the title race.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
