Mancashter United (Home) 16.02.2025

It was a bitterly cold afternoon as the fans took their seats, although there were a large number of season ticket holders who weren’t at the game, which could have been because it was half term in some areas.  That leads to a shift in the atmosphere, but elsewhere in the stadium it was good with the majority of the support getting behind the team.

Spurs started aggressively, with little Mathys Tel making the first foul of the match on de Ligt !  Onan tried to steal ten yards, but the referee pushed him back, but then, with the official’s back turned, the keeper threw the ball ten yards forward !  The linesman was right on the spot but didn’t bother to let the referee know.  Mazraoui then dragged Maddison down, needing two or three goes before a free-kick was given and although it came in nothing, Spurs built again with Son putting in a cross from the left that no Spurs player was on the end of and that was followed by a Spence cross from the same side that flashed high across the goal.  Djed has easily galloped away from Fernandes, as Spurs were making the most of the lack of pace in the United midfield.  In the opening five minutes Rodrigo Bentancur was twice jumped at by Hojlund and Zirkzee, neither of whom went for the ball.

In the tenth minute, a long pass down their right freed Hojlund, who was one-on-one with Ben Davies, with the striker coming inside to hit a low left-footed shot at goal that Guglielmo Vicario got down to quickly to keep out, but it stayed in the box.  The ball was recovered by United and Garnacho came in off the left to curl a right footed effort that the Spurs keeper stretched up and to his left to keep out with his right hand, with the ball dropping just beyond the far post in the six-yard box where Dalot was and his ball into the goal-mouth was cleared from in front of goal by Davies.

12 minutes had gone when Pedro Porro did well to put the ball in front of Bentancur on the right wing that allowed him to cross first time.  He played it deep to where Son had dropped beyond the last defender and he struck a volley that deflected off Mazraoui going to Luca Bergvall in the box, who took a touch before hitting a low shot at goal.  It was the strongest shot in the world, bobbling along the ground, but it was far enough to Onana’s left that the keeper struggled to reach it and could only parry the ball out to his left, where James Maddison came in to put it past him while he was still on the floor from a couple of yards out.  Madders was alive to the opportunity and the six United players in the box were all like they were playing Statues, as they failed to react to the possibility that the ball might run loose.  It was a fantastic piece of anticipation by the Spurs midfielder which will have gone a long way to silencing the critics, who had laid into him during the week.  There wasn’t even appeals for offside from the Reds as they realised their lack of response had been costly.

The Spurs press was hurrying United into passing the ball before they wanted and Lucas Bergvall was dominating the more experienced Casemiro and was running the Brazilian international’s legs off.  He was so worried that when he got the ball, he expected a challenge from the young Swede and went down, being shocked when he didn’t get a free-kick, he sat on the ground while the referee waved play on.  Spurs were fighting for every ball and when Spence lost possession, Bentancur was quickly in on Fernandes to win it back for Djed, who looked forward and only an interception by Maguire prevented Tel being sent through from halfway.  Zirkzee fired a shot across goal from outside the box to the left and it went wide of the far post with Vicario diving but having it covered, with this followed shortly afterwards by Garnacho being played into the area by Fernandes, but with Kevin diving across to slide in front of him, he blazed his shot way over the bar when he should have hit the target.

The game was going from end to end and Tottenham blocked a shot from Fernandes and the ball went forward to Tel, who was crashed to the floor by Casemiro.  Maddison’s ball inside Dalot to find Son brought another opportunity when our skipper pulled the ball back to Mathys Tel, who fired in a first-time shot that Onana had to dive to his right to push away for a corner. 

Again the referee told Dorgu to stop and take the throw-in from where he was, but once he turned away, the defender stole 15 yards up the touchline.  What is the point ?  When Tottenham won the ball back, Porro put one of his dangerous cross in from right on the dead ball line, but no white shirt had read it and Dalot cleared away.  Maddison made a challenge on Fernandes that looked like a booking all day long, but the referee only had a word.  From the free kick Fernandes played it to the left where Maguire had made a run, but the lumbering central defender could only stretch to volley the ball straight off the pitch.  Another free-kick for the visitors gave them a chance to lump it into the box and a free-kick was given as de Ligt was offside (as were a couple of other United players) but it could easily have been for the same player hitting Vicario in the air or Bergvall being pulled down off the ball.  A subsequent free-kick bounced around on the edge of the six-yard box with no Spurs player taking charge of the situation until Djed booted the ball clear and from that United played the ball into the area again, but Bentancur won the ball and Son got possession before being clattered from behind by Casemiro.  At last the yellow card came out for the elderly midfielder, who stayed down hoping that he might get some sympathy that wasn’t forthcoming.  The tackle that had seen the Brazilian come down on top of Son’s ankle as he ran away form him, left the Spurs skipper limping after staying down for a while.  

United looked like they might get away down their left when Onana rolled the ball out to Dorgu, but when the Dane took a heavy touch, Porro made good ground to block the pass that was intended to send Garnacho away.  Mazraoui made a bad tackle on Spence that only brought a free-kick despite the trail of fouls the United right back had committed.   

Victor Wanyama was the half-time guest, explaining how he enjoyed his time at Tottenham and dropping a teaser about a move he was about to complete.  His son, decked out in Spurs gear was quite happy to run up and down the pitch-side slope.  Maybe he was just warming up !

When the second half started a ball out to Dorgu won them a free-kick as Kulusevski closed him down, but received an arm that was thrown in his face by the United full-back.  Tottenham defended that and broke to the other end when Dejan won a corner after nicking the ball off de Ligt, who was trying to see the ball out.  It dropped in the box and Danso got a touch before Tel hit it at goal, but into Onana’s arms again.  Mathys had another chance when Djed spun of Mazraoui and put a low ball across the box, but it was a bit behind the French forward, who could only react quicky and lift his shot high over the top.

Having been caught offside a couple of times, United broke the highline with Zirkzee playing a ball through to Garnacho to run into the box, but Porro had smelt the danger and covered across to hurry him into a shot, with Vicario blocking it.  A Fernandes cross was headed out by Danso, but it fell inside the edge of the penalty area and Garnacho seized on it to hit a low first-time drive that Vicario got down to very well at the foot of his right hand post to push out and it would have fell straight to Zirkzee, but knowing he was offside, he left the ball for Danso to clear.  

Spurs were going through a period when they couldn’t hang onto the ball, but when Son won it, Maddison dragged it back under the sole of his boot to the skipper to send him away 20 yards inside the Tottenham half, he delayed whatever he was going to do with it and it got caught under his feet and taken off him, with Kulusevski and Tel in good positions to receive it.  It sparked a little revival, with James chipping a ball onto Tel’s chest in the box which he then volleyed at goal, with de Ligt being close to him and deflecting it wide for a corner.  It was taken short and Maddison looked to cross the ball low, which was blocked out to Son, who ran across the inside of the box from left to right and shot, as de Ligt blocked it for another corner.  In the second phase of that corner, Porro drilled a low ball across the box and it reached Mathys at the far post, where he hit it first time and Mazraoui was the one throwing the block on this occasion.    

.Just after the hour, United looked to play the ball out from a Spurs attack to Hojlund, but James Maddison was there to slide in to take the ball off the opposition striker and that was Madders’ last action in the match, with Bergvall also replaced, with a surprise appearance from Brennan Johnson being joined off the bench by Pape Matar Sarr.   Following another corner, Dalot dived into a tackle on Johnson giving Tottenham a free-kick which was whipped into the near post by Son for Kulusevski to flick it at goal, being blocked for another corner by Dalot.  Son took it on our left wing and it was low to the front post again, btu cleared away, although not for long, as it came back again as Bentacur turned away from Zirkzee so easily, it was an embarrassment for the United striker and it lead to Spence coming inside to shoot, but the effort lacked real power or direction and ended up straight into Onana’s arms.  When Porro picked off a pass outside the Tottenham penalty area, he moved it on to Johnson and a couple of passes between him and Kulusevski worked the ball to son, whose shot was deflected off Mazraoui for a corner, which, this time, the captain bent in to the near post, going for goal, but it was a foot too high.

Kevin Danso had a fine game and typified his reading of play when Zirkzee looked to send Hojlund in on goal, but the new Spurs man slid back to take the ball away from him and back to Vicario.  United’s clearest chance came in the 72nd minute, when Mazraoui’s cross from the right found Zirkzee unmarked in the middle of the box between our two central defenders, but his header flew wide of the far post, when he surely should have got it on target.  Hojlund, another forward who was terrible for United, had a chance when he ran into the left hand channel in the box, but his shot was directly at Vicario and when the away side won a corner, it was played into the near post, although Vicario got there with a good punch to get the ball away.  Casemiro went down, not for the first but about the twelfth time, this time in the box when Spence held him off with two hands in his chest, but the ref wasn’t interested at all.  He’d seen it all before.  When the ball came back again, Spurs broke up the move inside their own box, the ball was played out and Porro put a pass over Dorgu for Johnson to run onto.  His pass inside wasn’t great, as it was behind Son, but he laid it back into the run of Tel just outside the D, but his effort was lacking power and it was straight through to the keeper.

There was a brilliant turn away by Rodrigo as Fernandes tried to close him down, but Bentancur ran the ball up the pitch, finding Kulusevski  who took on Dorgu that brought another corner.  Porro pulled it back to the edge of the D and Bissouma tried a first-time volley with his first touch after coming on, but dug it into the ground and it was headed away. Ben Davies battled for the ball outside the area and it ended up with Dejan getting possession, finding Son outside him on the right and the return pass brought a shot from Kulusevski that Onana had to go to ground to his right to beat out.  As the ball was played forward, Ben clattered Hojlund, although the ref waved play on with the move being halted by Spence coming over from left back to block Hojlund’s shot on the other side of the goal.  Davies got a booking before the corner came in with players crowding Vicario, who once more did well to punch the ball out under the bar.  Before all that Archie Gray had replaced Kevin Danso to bring on some fresh legs.

Zirkzee had an air shot at a deep cross and it allowed us to break with Tel’s pass trying to find Kulusevski in the area picked off at the other end.  Another surprise appearance was that of Wilson Odobert for the first time since the Coventry League Cup tie as he replaced Heung-Min Son.  Casemiro had a free header from a United corner, but he couldn’t get over it and it went high towards the bar, with Guglielmo catching it before it got there just before the 90 minutes came up.  Odobert jinked past a couple of United players before his pass was deflected into the path of Tel in the box, but his cross was cut out by Onana and when the ball was thrown out, Porro burst in front of Dorgu and was the victim of a really bad tackle by the full-back that brought a yellow card out in the 90th minute.  With Son having been substituted, Vic took over the armband and took it upon himself to urge Spurs to take a free-kick and then a corner into the corner of the pitch and hold it there.  Going up to the halfway line to issue this advice was worrying enough and the instruction is a bit mis-guided, as we are not very good at doing that as the corner from Davies’ blocked shot in the box that led to a Man U throw-in after a matter of seconds proved.

Porro won a header on halfway from Onana’s clearance and with Kulusevski offside, he left it for Mathys, who took the ball down but it wouldn’t sit for him to get a shot off before the keeper came to block him.

At the final whistle, there was a roar of relief as much as anything that greeted it.  A couple of Spurs players dropped to the floor with the effort that they had put in and it shows how a week without a midweek game benefits the team.  Spurs looked a little more like the version that was doing well before the injuries hit, moving the ball better than they have been recently, but also throwing in those heart-stopping moments which quite a few Tottenham fans don’t seem to be able to understand or cope with.  There are improvements to be made, but with first teamers returning to the side, the options available to Ange are greater and the ability to make changes to give players a break.  

As it was, Son, Danso and Bentancur all picked up knocks in the match, but without a game for six days, it may not rule them out of the visit to Ipswich.  The performances of Spence, Davies, Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison and Porro adds promise to the club for the remainder of the matches this season, with good cameos from the substitutes it was a positive match at this stage of the campaign that lifted us up to 12th.  The good feeling needs to be carried on to give the best opportunity of finishing as far up the table as possible. 

Euan Oosarmi

• Tottenham completed their first league ‘double’ over Mancashter United since the 1989-1990 season.
• This was Tottenham’s first home league win in 105 days since they beat Aston Villa on 9th November 2024.
• Tottenham’s goal was their 150th at home against United in competitive matches.