Laporte header seals League Cup triumph for City

But City finally made the breakthrough in the 82nd minute from an unlikely source as defender Laporte met Kevin de Bruyne’s free kick and headed past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Manchester City claimed a record-equalling fourth successive League Cup triumph as Aymeric Laporte’s late header sealed a deserved 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Spurs had soaked up intense City pressure for most of the game to somehow stay in contention at Wembley Stadium.

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But City finally made the breakthrough in the 82nd minute from an unlikely source as defender Laporte met Kevin de Bruyne’s free kick and headed past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

A combination of Lloris, last-ditch defending and some poor City finishing had kept the 8,000 crowd on tenterhooks but in the end Pep Guardiola’s side got their reward.

They have now matched Liverpool’s feat of winning the competition for four seasons in a row, and also join Liverpool with the most League Cup wins on eight.

Tottenham, who had rookie manager Ryan Mason on the touchline after Jose Mourinho’s sacking last week, produced a disappointing performance and their wait for a first trophy since winning the 2008 League Cup continues.

After City’s FA Cup semifinal loss to Chelsea last weekend, they chalked off the first part of what they hope will be a treble, with the Premier League title almost in the bag and a Champions League semi-final to come against Paris St Germain.