The Tottenham fans who made the trip to Milton Keynes for their "home match" against Watford were richly rewarded, witnessing a thrilling finale and then a dramatic victory in a penalty shootout.
They would have been fearing the worst when Isaac Success put the Hornets ahead seconds after the interval in this Carabao Cup third-round tie, but Dele Alli equalised with an 81st-minute penalty and Erik Lamela then made it 2-1 late on. There was still time for Tottenham to throw away their lead, though -- a familiar failing recently -- as ex-Tottenham midfielder Etienne Capoue's shot deflected off past Paulo Gazzaniga.
But Spurs' No. 3 goalkeeper produced heroics during the ensuing shootout, denying Capoue and Domingos Quina before giving the stage to Alli, whose second successful spot kick of the night sealed a 4-2 victory on penalties.
Positives
The Carabao Cup is Spurs' best chance of ending their trophy drought, and they are through to the next round, having beaten another Premier League side. Meanwhile, Manchester United and Liverpool are already out.
Senior players such as Harry Kane had a useful night off, and some who have had little action in the early weeks of the season got valuable game time. Alli had a dream return to Stadium MK too.
Negatives
This was hardly an impressive showcase of Spurs' strength in depth -- depth that's been further weakened by Pochettin's confirmation that Serge Aurier suffered a quad injury. With 10 minutes left, Mauricio Pochettino's second-string side were heading for defeat against a Watford side who had made 10 changes themselves.
Spurs' manager had to summon the cavalry, introducing Mousa Dembele and Son Heung-Min, to salvage the situation, and even then his side threw away another lead, just like in the previous meeting with Watford and against Inter Milan.
Manager rating out of 10
7 -- Pochettino's team selection mostly made sense, the only criticism being that he could and maybe should have given youngster Kyle Walker-Peters an opportunity in place of out-of-form left-back Ben Davies. The Argentine's double substitution then had the desired effect as his side turned a losing position into a winning one.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Paulo Gazzaniga, 8 -- Couldn't do much about the first goal and, although the second was quite close to him, it took a big deflection. The Argentine then became a hero in the shootout, saving two of Watford's four spot kicks.
DF Serge Aurier, 7 -- Made a goal-saving tackle on Ken Sema but was held off by Success when Watford broke the deadlock. The Ivorian set up a couple of good chances at the other end with accurate crosses to Moussa Sissoko and Fernando Llorente.
DF Davinson Sanchez, 5 -- Spurs continue to look vulnerable when he plays, and he could have done better with a free header in Watford's box just after the hour mark.
DF Toby Alderweireld, 7 -- Defended well and used his long-range accuracy to good effect, pinging crossfield passes out to the full-backs and over the top of Watford's defence.
DF Ben Davies, 4 -- Poor again. The Welshman provided little going forward and gave the ball straight to a Watford player outside his own box at the end of the first half. Capoue's late shot then cruelly deflected in off Davies to level the scores.
MF Victor Wanyama, 6 -- Made his first start of the season and was solid if unspectacular.
MF Harry Winks, 7 -- Saw plenty of the ball and kept it moving, while playing a key role in Lamela's goal when he freed Dembele down the right side.
MF Moussa Sissoko, 6 -- Charged around energetically as usual and set up a good chance for Alli with a chipped through ball while seeing his own goal-bound shot blocked.
FW Erik Lamela, 6 -- Battled gamely throughout but failed to really hurt Watford until the 86th minute. And, although he took his goal well, he then gave the ball away unnecessarily when the Hornets quickly replied.
FW Dele Alli, 8 -- Ran the show at times in the first half, spraying pinpoint passes around and linking well with teammates. While he was quieter either side of half-time, the 22-year-old won the equalising penalty, converted it himself and then scored the winning spot kick in the shootout.
FW Lucas Moura, 6 -- Showed off his excellent close control on a few occasions, slaloming between opponents, while shooting across goal in the first half and creating a headed chance for Sanchez.
Substitutes
MF Son Heung-Min, 7 -- Entered the fray just after the hour mark and very nearly scored when Spurs were 1-0 down as his goal-bound shot was cleared off the line by Ben Wilmot.
MF Mousa Dembele, 7 -- Replaced Wanyama and was a central figure in the turnaround, first with his control in midfield and then with his inch-perfect assist for Lamela's winner.
FW Fernando Llorente, 6 -- Came on the for the final 20 minutes and headed over from an Aurier cross.