· 2 min readIn this Man United vs Tottenham match, I analyse the key tactical moments, individual performances and turning points of the game.
Some people call this the “El Sackico”, and it’s easy to see why. Two teams from the famous English Top Six who, lately, have been much closer to fighting relegation than fighting for titles. United came into the game on the back of two consecutive defeats, while Tottenham were still without a win in the Premier League. Both desperately needed to win. And in the opening minutes, it was immediately clear which team seemed to have understood that urgency better.
In the third minute, Lammens tried to play the ball to Mainoo, Bergvall intercepted and Solanke was through on goal. His shot was saved by Lammens himself, who made up for his mistake, but the warning had been given. Tottenham started with a different energy, more possession and a greater desire to get at goal. De Zerbi even made a few changes, with Sávio on the left and Kudus on the right, and the team made good use of the spaces.
United, on the other hand, looked as though they were playing with the handbrake on. By the 17th minute, it already felt as if the players were tired, while their opponents were running much harder. Ridiculous, considering we were still in the early stages of the game. Tottenham were getting into the final third with ease, Gallagher had time and space to think, and Old Trafford started to lose patience. By the 26th minute, the visitors had five shots to United’s none and 66% possession.
The hosts’ first shot didn’t come until the 34th minute, when Diallo had a go on the counter-attack after a Tottenham corner. Meanwhile, Tottenham started to lose intensity. It’s a pattern we’ve seen from this team: they come out flying, fail to take their chances and eventually let their opponents back into the game. At half-time, the numbers were clear: 0.96 expected goals for Tottenham compared to just 0.05 for United.
In the second half, Solanke wasted another good chance, but the game became more open. Carrick responded with three substitutions, including Baleba’s official debut, and United finally started to show up. They still needed to turn that improvement into real danger, but they were getting into the opposition box more often.
In the 72nd minute, Cunha found Mbeumo on the left, who controlled the ball, set himself and fired into the far corner. A lovely goal, and finally Old Trafford had something to celebrate. Shortly afterwards, Bentancur was sent off for headbutting Shaw. The Uruguayan had to go, but Shaw shouldn’t have escaped punishment either after chasing him down and shoving him.
With a man down, Tottenham looked doomed. They had gone almost twenty minutes without a shot and United had the game under control. But in the 90+2nd minute, Tonali crossed and Solanke rose to head home the equaliser. Lammens barely moved, while Lisandro Martínez once again showed the difficulties he can have in the air against taller forwards.
Post-match
United let a win that seemed guaranteed slip away, while Tottenham found a way to avoid defeat. For Carrick, it’s a draw that feels like too little; for De Zerbi, at least it’s a point salvaged when everything seemed lost, although the first half, especially the opening 20-25 minutes, had been good.
