Review: Tottenham Hotspur v/s Man United

                                        MATCH STATS

Tottenham Hotspur		Manchester United
1	Goals	3
18(6)	Shots (on Goal)	6(5)
10	Fouls	10
7	Corner Kicks	3
1	Offsides	0
52%	Time of Possession	48%
1	Yellow Cards	2
0	Red Cards	0
2	Saves	5

* Stats source: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/match?id=318284&cc=5739

Football results this week have been surprising, performances have improved but the results have gone to the under-performers, especially the Liverpool vs Arsenal game and Spurs vs United. Anyway, fortune favours the brave- Arsenal left it late and United were victims of Day-light robbery. United have not lost to Spurs since May 2001, I.e. a total of 25 games, 21 of them being in the Premier League. 

White hart lane was buzzing, Spurs are living a dream- 3rd place right above their local rivals Arsenal. Banners of support for Harry Redknap were to be seen everywhere and the stadium flocked with white shirts all over. This was an important game for both teams, a slip up by one had a say on the title race.

Gareth Bale was declared unfit for the game after picking up an illness whilst Van der Vaart failed to make it to the bench as well. Man United on the other hand welcomed Anderson back to the squad, however he had to sit on the bench alongside Park and Giggs. 

The game kicked off and Spurs dominated possession throughout the half, Sandro and Livermore were doing a great job in the centre of the midfield by preventing United to play their passing game. Scholesy had a tough time against Sandro whilst Jones was finding it difficult defending against Modric who played on the wing.

Spurs were the first to attack with Adebayor taking a shot that went a few inches above the bar and a few minutes later saw his shot saved by De Gea for a corner. It was all Spurs and they scored the first goal of the game after great play by Modric on the right, cutting in, displaced Jones and crossed it low across, De Gea was first to react after stretching his palm and push it away however it fell to Saha- the Frenchman shot the ball only to see his effort blocked unintentionally by Adebayor who then saw the ball touch his arm and help him control it before firing it home. The goal was however disallowed because of the handball! 

Adebayor handling the ball before scoring the goal that was disallowed....

Spurs were enjoying plenty possession throughout and United had hardly tested Friedel. United however drew first blood, a corner by Ashley Young in the 45th Minute saw Rooney lose his marker Kyle Walker and head it towards the goal. Friedel couldn't do much about it, and there it was- the champions had scored without having real touch of the ball. United went to half time leading by a goal thanks to Wayne Rooney who scored his 7th career goal against Spurs!

The second half resumed with Spurs still having the most of the ball. Livermore shot towards goal and his shot deflect Saha forcing De Gea to make a wonderful save going low down and Evans was quick to react and sent it out for a corner. 

Wayne Rooney heads it past Walker and Friedel for the first goal

A few moments later, Evra brought down Modric outside the box and Spurs had a free kick at a dangerous position. Essou Ekotto tried his luck and saw his effort tip the bar and go out for a goal kick, De Gea had it covered though.

A minute later United found themselves leading by 2 goals. Luis Nani did well to go through Modric and crossed the ball across the goal, it took a deflection but Kyle Walker did well to clear it off the line, his effort however landed to Ashley Young who volleyed the ball into the net. Spurs were shocked, they didn't deserve to be two goals behind. 

Ashley Young(Not to be seen) scores the second goal of the game

United made their first change, with Giggs coming on for Scholes, the Welshman had immediate impact as he set up United's third goal. After exchanging neat passes with Evra, the Frenchman passed the ball to Young who found himself in acres of space and curled the ball into the top corner. United were 3 up, Ashley Young was having a great day whilst Spurs were just baffled! 

Ashley Young scoring his second goal....

Spurs made a few changes with Defoe coming on for Saha, whilst Sandro was replaced by Kranjcar. The changes made little impact as United were having the most of the ball and knew the game was put to an end. Nani was replaced by Park and United were set to victory without any let dramas. 

Defoe however pulled one back for Spurs on the 87th minute, when he intercepted Giggs's lazy back pass and fired a shot which left De Gea flat footed and direct in to the left bottom corner. This was the first goal De Gea had ever conceded outside the box since the start of the Premier League season!

Defoe scoring a consolation for Spurs in the 86'

D. Rose who replaced Lennon had a few neat touches but could not provide the impact that was needed. The game had 4 minutes of added time that saw Essou Ekotto's volley go way out and Ferdinand made an important block from Adebayor. The game ended with United maintaining their best away record form, collecting 33 points from a possible 42, 8 points more than they the total away points collected last season. 

Man of the Match:

I would give it to Rio Ferdinand, he did well to defend against Adebayor and Saha who were a constant threat at the back. His presence was felt and made vital blocks. 

Ashley Young was great as well, 1 assist and 2 goals despite having played in the week for England. 

I however, would stick to Ferdinand.

Rio had Adebayor well covered throughout the game!

Manager Views:

SAF: 

The manager admitted it wasn't a great display and got his tactics wrong in the first half of the game. He praised Spurs for their performance and vowed to fight till the end to make sure United win the title.

Harry Redknap:

The Spurs manager was happy with his team's performance and said they were unlucky not to have got the most out of this game despite having most of the possession. He however admitted that it's a two horse title race and hopes he finishes third.

My Comments:

Man United are preparing to welcome their injured players back, with Cleverley and Smalling expected next week and Valencia any time soon. The title race seems to be between the two Manchester clubs. Meanwhile, pressure is now on Tottenham to maintain their 3rd position spot as Arsenal are 4 points adrift with a better goal advantage. Prior to Spurs's clash with Arsenal, Spurs were 10 points above Arsenal, and now they find themselves just 4 points ahead!
That's football for you- cruel but interesting!

That's all from me this week, see you all next week!

Adios!

Mj