Tottenham's near two-decade trophy drought will not be snapped in the Carabao Cup, after Liverpool inflicted a thumping 4-0 win in the second leg of their semi-final at Anfield.
Languishing in 14th on the Premier League ladder, the Carabao Cup was an opportunity for the Spurs to salvage something from an otherwise bitterly disappointing season.
Having won the opening leg 1-0 to end Liverpool's 24-match unbeaten run in all competitions, Ange Postecoglou's men needed only a draw to move through to the final, but barely made a contest.
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"I'm disappointed we weren't able to give a better account of ourselves today and give ourselves a chance to get into a final," Postecoglou told Sky Sports after the match.
"We had a great opportunity and unfortunately we didn't grab it."
To make matters worse, the loss carried with it another heavy injury blow, Brazilian star striker Richarlison limped off just before half time.
Down only 1-0 at half time, Postecoglou could only watch on as his side capitulated in the second 45 as Liverpool put three goals past a helpless Antonin Kinsky.
Legendary commentator Andy Gray said on beIN Sport it was "torture" for Tottenham and their fans.
Tottenham haven't won a trophy of any kind since the 2008 League Cup win over Chelsea.
"Ultimately they thoroughly deserved victory tonight. They were the far better team," Postecoglou said.
"We weren't able to get a grip on any part of the game defensively or with the ball, they were too good for us.
"We allowed them to get into the game. We just weren't as aggressive as we needed to be.
"We didn't start the game on the right footing, it allowed them to get comfortable, and once they were comfortable it was very difficult for us to wrestle that control back.
"We needed to be braver with and without the ball, but it's easier said than done at a place like this against a very good Liverpool team."
Needing to win by two goals to move through to the final against Newcastle, Liverpool were relentless from the opening whistle, and had the first genuine opportunity only eight minutes into the clash, followed by another from a corner only minutes later which Spurs did well to clear.
Tottenham had a couple of moments in the middle of the first half where they looked threatening, but never really dangerous.
On the half-hour mark, Liverpool had a goal chalked off when Dominik Szoboszlai was called back, clearly offside.
Liverpool were again on the attack only minutes later, but Mo Salah blew the shot well over the crossbar.
The Reds finally got the breakthrough in the 34th minute when a Salah cross from just inside the box sat perfectly for Cody Gakpo to slam it inside the post.
Coming into half time, Liverpool continued to dominate possession and field position, but Spurs did enough to keep them out.
Then the football gods landed another injury blow to Tottenham, and it was a big one. Richarlison limped off the field, and Mathys Tel was thrust in to make his debut only days after signing with the club.
As the second half got underway, Kinsky was twice required to save big shots, including the first only 30 seconds after the whistle.
Liverpool went ahead on aggregate in the 51st minute on the back of a penalty nailed by Salah.
Salah put a lovely ball into the box to Darwin Nunez, who had his feet taken out from under him as Kinsky rushed out to collect it. Salah made no mistake with the penalty, almost putting a hole in the top left corner of the net.
Spurs, meanwhile, rarely found themselves in any kind of position to threaten.
Kinsky got fingertips to a Gakpo shot that grazed the far post in the 63rd minute that would almost certainly have sealed Spurs' fate.
But the killer blow came with 15 minutes remaining when Mac Allister made a break through the middle, who then found Salah, who then found Dominik Szoboszlai who comfortably beat Kinsky to give Liverpool a 3-0 lead on the night and 3-1 aggregate lead.
Son Heung-min came close to scoring on the counter in the 79th minute, but the shot from close range drilled the underside of the post and away.
But less then a minute later, Liverpool had another corner kick, and a Virgil van Dijk header found the back of the net to make it four.
Postecoglou and the Spurs will now turn their focus to their fourth-round FA Cup clash against Aston Villa on Monday morning (AEDT).
