League Cup round-up: Stoke win shootout after crazy 4-4 draw with Birmingham
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Your support makes all the difference.Substitute Peter Lovenkrands scored twice in the final five minutes for 10-man Birmingham to force extra time against Stoke – then Olly Lee cancelled out Kenwyne Jones’s effort to take the tie to penalties. But Stoke came out on top taking the penalty shootout 4-2.
Oussama Assaidi, Peter Crouch and Marko Arnautovic had put the visitors in a comfortable position, until Lovenkrands added to Tom Adeyemi’s first-half effort for Birmingham.
The home side had started well, with Adeyemi cancelling out Assaidi’s 10th-minute shot, but they then were down a man after Wade Elliott was sent off following an off-the-ball incident with Stoke’s first goalscorer.
Stoke made their numerical advantage count, as Crouch headed Marc Muniesa’s cross in at the far post. Arnautovic had looked to have made it safe for Stoke with 19 minutes remaining, but then Lovenkrands forced extra time. Jones then capitalised on tiring Birmingham within three minutes of the restart, only for Lee to cut through the Stoke defence to make it 4-4 for his first senior goal.
West Ham needed two penalties to get past a spirited Burnley to edge into the quarter-finals, with Matt Taylor and Jack Collison scoring. Jason Shackell provided the turning point in the game when he fouled Kevin Nolan – and Taylor was able to score from the penalty spot. Then at the death Keith Treacy fouled Jack Collison – and was sent off for his troubles – and the Welshman recovered to score the Hammers’ second.
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