Man Utd 2-0 Tottenham
Darron Gibson stated an eloquent case for Manchester United's young brigade by scoring twice to send the holders into the Carling Cup semi-final at the expense of Spurs at Old Trafford.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson had reacted angrily to criticism levelled at his emerging stars after the defeat against Besiktas that ended their 23-game unbeaten home record in the Champions League.
Ferguson launched a passionate defence of his home-grown products and gave them another chance to impress against Spurs - and 22-year-old Gibson was the star of the show as United saw off Harry Redknapp's side in a repeat of last season's Wembley final.
Gibson opened the scoring with an early long-range finish, then produced an even more spectacular effort just before half-time to put United into the last four on a rain-sodden Old Trafford night.
Spurs' challenge fizzled out after a bright start, with United defender Nemanja Vidic providing experience and a formidable barrier on the rare occasions when the Londoners did threaten.
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Portsmouth 2-4 Aston Villa
Stewart Downing scored on his first start for Aston Villa as they secured a deserved victory over Portsmouth in the Carling Cup quarter-final.
Stiliyan Petrov sliced a corner into his own net to give Portsmouth the lead but a minute later Emile Heskey ran through on goal to chip Villa level.
James Milner's drive put the visitors ahead and Downing's second-half header seemed to have settled the tie.
A Kanu strike gave Pompey hope but Ashley Young's goal extinguished it.
Portsmouth boss Avram Grant's last game as a manager in this competition was a defeat to Tottenham in the 2008 final during his time at Chelsea.
However, in stark contrast to his time at Stamford Bridge, Grant is now tasked with steering a struggling side away from the Premier League relegation zone.
To this end, Grant rested his first-choice strikers Frederic Piquionne and Aruna Dindane with Danny Webber and John Utaka coming in.
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