Tottenham vs Manchester United: Five things we learnt as Roy Keane rant steals the show

Five things we learnt: Mourinho's game plan only half works, Pogba shows United what they've been missing and Keane rant was no act

Pogba, moments before drawing a foul from Eric Dier, right (Getty)

Mourinho’s game plan only half works

Manchester United began well. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were on top, dominating possession, and largely had the run of things, but that's just not how they've got results from these types of games this season. If anything, United have struggled desperately when forced to hold possession and create against a deep-set defence.

Jose Mourinho, of course, knew that. He told his Tottenham players to wait for an opportunity to counter and when it came, they took it. But they then continued to invite pressure, and that approach always carries a certain danger. United came on strong again in the second half and given Tottenham’s lack of an outlet - with Harry Kane isolated and ineffective throughout - it was no surprise when Steven Bergwijn's breakthrough was eventually cancelled out. Their winless run stretches to seven games.

Pogba makes the difference for United

It took 18 minutes for Paul Pogba to remind United supporters what they’d been missing, although his best work often goes unnoticed. He’s a creator rather than a dribbler, usually operating in deep positions rather than the penalty area, which is why he is so often accused of failing to deliver match-winning performances.

He did not win the game here, but he did rescue a point for United with his burst along the byline, drawing the foul from Eric Dier that led to Bruno Fernandes’s equaliser from the penalty spot. It was the type of decisive contribution that Pogba provides more often than he is given credit for, and the type that United have missed during his long absences this season.

De Gea’s startling decline continues

This was a great day for one United goalkeeper. Dean Henderson’s hopes of returning to Old Trafford and becoming Solskjaer’s No 1 were done no damage by David de Gea’s error, which was the latest in a long line of mistakes over the past two seasons. No goalkeeper has made more errors leading to goals than the Spaniard in that time.

This was not the worst or most egregious - take either of those home and away against Everton earlier this season, for example - but it was further evidence of De Gea’s startling decline. During Mourinho’s second season at Old Trafford, he lived up to the billing as the best in the world. You’d now be hard pressed to say he is even the best on United’s books.

Are drinks breaks always necessary?

The unexpected controversy of the evening was the use of drinks breaks, which have been introduced as part of Project Restart. The logic is obvious. They are there to combat the heat, humidity and additional fatigue that comes with playing during the summer months but are they necessary on a wet night in north London?

There were two in total, halfway through each half, and each time United were unfortunate to have spells of momentum broken by a considerable stoppage in play. Even if Gary Neville’s protests on co-commentary were a little over-the-top, would it not make sense to ask teams before kick-off whether they think the conditions require a break?

Keane's meltdown was no act

But the highlight of the evening, undoubtedly, was Roy Keane’s analysis of the first half in the Sky Sports studio. In a rant bordering on the delirious, Keane said he would be “swinging punches” at De Gea for his error, that he is “sick to death” of the United goalkeeper, and that if he were still playing, he would not let De Gea or Maguire on the team bus after the match.

Is Keane playing a character, hammed up for the television cameras? His half-time tirade certainly came across as a parody, but Keane has always been the epitome of English football’s old-school belligerent machismo. If you know Keane, you should know he’s not putting it on, and that might be the most scary thing of all.