Tottenham 3 Manchester City 4
Manchester City may be a most unstable team, but their split personality scared the wits out of Tottenham Hotspur in this FA Cup fourth round replay.
Despite being a man down and 3-0 behind at the interval, they recovered to grasp victory when the substitute Jonathan Macken headed in their fourth goal in stoppage time.
This may well be as great a comeback as English football has ever known and Spurs humiliation must feel as if it is of similar proportions. Yet the home side had been impressive in the early part of the evening and it is understandable the dismissal of Joey Barton should lull them.
City had only one win in 18 matches before this tie, but they can never be described as in a rut. The first novelty they produced was the dismissal, for a second yellow card, of Barton after the half-time whistle had blown. The midfielder was guilty of dissent towards Rob Styles.
Arni Arason, making his debut in goal since David James was Cup-tied, was beaten in the second minute. Ledley King put them ahead with an exuberant finish to a move in which he had been involved. Once Stephane Dalmat's flick had broken back to him off Richard Dunne, he stepped inside Michael Tarnat, working the ball from right foot to left and putting a strong, bending shot high into the net.
The loss of Helder Postiga to an apparent calf strain in the ninth minute did not curb the exuberance. After 19 minutes, Stephen Carr flighted a venomous ball over the City defence and Robbie Keane finished with refinement, disregarding the pursuing Sylvain Distin to flicking the ball home with his left foot.
Two minutes before half-time Barton collected his first booking by bringing down Michael Brown. With confidence coursing through Spurs, it seemed pre-determined Christian Ziege should curl the free over the wall and into the top corner.
But City were not entirely crushed. Even after Nicolas Anelka had gone off with a groin strain, they might have trimmed the deficit to 2-1 had Robbie Fowler not miskicked a cut-back from Shaun Wright-Phillips.
With the perversity that is woven through the club, City grew in stature once they were reduced in numbers. Perhaps they were angry Styles had not simply brushed away Barton's remonstrations or maybe the seeming hopelessness of their position was liberating. Keegan's team were in a rage of attacking intent in the second half. Tarnat's long free-kick carried over the defence until the rushing Distin headed it home.
That was a tart reminder David Pleat's team have experience of self-induced woe. They could have restored order swiftly but Arason tipped a Ziege free-kick on to the crossbar before grasping a Poyet header on his goal-line. Proceedings became more frantic after 61 minutes when a Tarnat cross was not cleared and Paul Bosvelt scored with a drive that took a deflection off Anthony Gardner.
The flavour of the night was becoming unpalatable to Spurs. When their superior numbers did tell, Poyet volleyed off target and later found Arason saving impressively. The team's foreboding must have announced itself. They cannot have been wholly surprised by the equaliser 10 minutes from the end. Fowler put Wright-Phillips through on the right and the midfielder dinked the ball over Kasey Keller.
Guardian Service
TOTTENHAM: Keller, Carr, Richards, Gardner, Ziege (Jackson 60), Dalmat, King, Brown, Davies, Postiga (Poyet 9), Keane. Subs Not Used: Burch, Yeates, Kelly. Goals: King 2, Keane 19, Ziege 43.
MAN CITY: Arason, Jihai, Dunne, Distin, Tarnat, Wright-Phillips, Barton, Bosvelt (Sibierski 80), Sinclair (McManaman 80), Fowler, Anelka (Macken 27). Subs Not Used: Stuhr-Ellegaard, Jordan. Sent Off: Barton (45). Booked: Barton, Bosvelt, Jihai. Goals: Distin 48, Bosvelt 61, Wright-Phillips 80, Macken 90.
Referee: R Styles (Hampshire).