Man Utd vs Tottenham LIVE: Premier League result, final score and reaction after Bruno Fernandes stunner
Fred and Fernandes scored in a dominant performance from the Red Devils
Manchester United produced arguably its most complete performance under Erik ten Hag by beating Tottenham 2-0 to move within a point of the Premier League’s top four on Wednesday.
Second-half goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes ensured victory in a game that saw Hugo Lloris pull off a string of fine saves to keep the score down.
United now sits one point behind fourth-place Chelsea and four off Tottenham, who have played a game more.
While victory prompted a rapturous response from the crowd — Cristiano Ronaldo threatened to steal the headlines when he walked off to the changing room before the final whistle blew.
The Portugal star was an unused substitute as United impressed without him.
Ten Hag is increasingly making his presence felt at Old Trafford, with standout wins against Liverpool and Premier League leader Arsenal already this season.
And Spurs became the latest big name to fall in front of United’s home fans, who were repeatedly out of their seats in response to some of the slickest football they’ve seen from their team under the new Dutch manager.
If not for Lloris, United would have held a sizeable lead by halftime, with the goalkeeper coming up with a host of impressive saves.
But he was finally beaten by Fred and Fernandes after the break after United’s dominance paid off.
Lloris was almost guilty of gifting United the lead after just six minutes when fumbling Antony’s long-range effort.
But he recovered to produce saves to deny Marcus Rashford, Fernandes and Luke Shaw before the break, while Antony saw another shot clip the outside of the post.
Harry Kane’s effort from a tight angle just before halftime was as close as Tottenham came to taking the lead.
Ten Hag has seen his team fail to make the most of chances in front of goal in recent weeks — most recently the goalless draw with Newcastle on Sunday.
But United was ahead at the start of the second half — even if it relied on a touch of fortune when Fred’s 47th-minute shot from outside the area was diverted past Lloris by the outstretched leg of Ben Davies.
As impressive as United’s performance was, Tottenham provided little in return.
Antonio Conte appeared helpless to coax his team into life as his players were repeatedly forced into errors and struggled to build attacks.
On one of the rare occasions Tottenham did look threatening, United punished the visitors with a rapid break to make it 2-0 after 69 minutes.
Kane had seen a close-range shot blocked by De Gea — and from there United pounced, quickly moving the ball into the Spurs penalty area.
When Fred’s effort was blocked, Fernandes was quick to send a first-time shot curling past Lloris.
Fernandes and Rashford both saw further chances blocked by Lloris as United went in search for more.
An October jinx?
Manchester United have won an unrivalled 72 Premier League games on a Wednesday. However, United are winless in each of their last six league fixtures played in October with four draws and two defeats.
‘We want to dictate games'
Man Utd boss, Erik ten Hag, says that the team is slowly forming the building blocks of his possession-focused style of play which stems from being solid in defence.
When asked if the team had improved in this area - United have kept clean sheets in their last two games - Ten Hag responded:
“We defend with eleven. It’s a team performance, from the front to the back. Really good defending and then you’ll see then that you can achieve clean sheets. It’s a base for every successful team.
“Yeah, we do really well. I know when the routines come even more in, they will become even more controlled, it will be even more dictating and that is what we aim for.
“We have now to get that routine in, 100 per cent, because in the defence you have to be 100 per cent disciplined. It’s never about ‘but’ or ‘if’: no, you have to do it. To do it as individuals, to do it as a team.”
Ten Hag arrives
Erik ten Hag has arrived at Old Trafford ahead of tonights clash with Tottenham. Can the Manchester United boss mastermind a victory against his top four rivals?
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag to wait before deciding future of out-of-contract players
Erik ten Hag says Manchester United will wait before making any decisions with players who are nearing the end of their contracts at the club, despite uncertainty over the future of senior figures like David de Gea and Cristiano Ronaldo.
As many as nine members of United’s first team squad could leave for free when their existing deals expire at the end of the season, although the club retains options to extend their terms by another year.
United typically trigger such extensions but, even then, are left with a choice to either make a new offer to the players in question, sell at a cut-price with only 12 months remaining on their deal, or allow them to go for nothing in a year’s time.
Marcus Rashford has entered the final year of his terms - as have Luke Shaw, Fred, Diogo Dalot, Tom Heaton, Axel Tuanzebe and Phil Jones - while Ronaldo and De Gea are United’s two highest-earning players.
Manchester United to wait before deciding future of out-of-contract players
Cristiano Ronaldo, David de Gea and Marcus Rashford among those in final year of existing terms
How to watch Man Utd vs Tottenham
How can I watch tonight’s clash at Old Trafford?
Like all Premier League games this week, it will be shown live on Amazon Prime Video. If you’re not an Amazon Prime Video subscriber start a free 30-day trial here.
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Manchester United vs Tottenham
Manchester United are vying to win four consecutive Premier League games against Tottenham, a feat they last achieved in 2010.
Spurs have lost 38 Premier League matches versus United, more than against any other opponent.
Conte on returning to Old Trafford
Spurs boss, Antonio Conte, has been speaking about his side returning to Old Trafford tonight and getting a positive result. Tottenham have performed well here in the last two seasons, first defeating United 6-1 under Jose Mourinho before being beaten 3-2 here in March largely thanks to a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick.
“Last season, Ronaldo was decisive,” Conte said. “He scored three goals and after the game, I said we lost against Cristiano, not United, because I think we played much better than them, and to lose the game.
“To have a good performance at Old Trafford is important for your confidence, your trust, and on Wednesday we need another good performance against a strong team, in a difficult environment like Old Trafford.
“We want to play a good game, we want to play with personality, we want to show first of all to ourselves that we are improving, that our level is growing and then, I repeat, we want to give satisfaction to our fans.”
Premier League standings
Tottenham Hotspur sit third in the Premier League table with seven wins, two draws and one loss from their first 10 games of the season. They have the same amount of points as the 2021/22 champions Manchester City (23) but trail the league leaders, Arsenal, by four.
Arsenal and City were due to play each other this week but that match has been rearranged due to Arsenal needing to play a Europa League game against PSV Eindhoven on Thursday. That being so, if Spurs defeat Manchester United this evening they will move above City and come within one point of the Gunners having played one game more.
Manchester United, meanwhile, are fifth. They are seven points behind Spurs and 11 off the top of the table having recorded five wins, one draw and three losses from their nine matches so far. There is an outside chance that picking up three points tonight could propel them into the top four but they would need to beat Tottenham by a hefty margin and hope Chelsea lose to Brentford.
Even so, a victory over Antonio Conte’s side would be a huge step for the Red Devils and would be a sign that under Erik ten Hag they are ready to challenge for the Champions League spots this season.
Anthony Martial out of Tottenham game but Christian Eriksen could return
Anthony Martial will not be available for Manchester United‘s Premier League meeting with Tottenham Hotspur but Christian Eriksen could return to face his former club.
Martial has missed nine of United’s 13 games this season through injury and is yet to recover from a back problem suffered during the recent win at Everton.
Erik ten Hag had hoped to welcome the 27-year-old back for Sunday’s goalless draw with Newcastle but he is still recovering, having already struggled with hamstring and Achilles issues since the start of the campaign.
Erik ten Hag offers injury update on Anthony Martial and Christian Eriksen
Martial has missed nine of United’s 13 games this season
Manchester United vs Tottenham early team news and predicted line-ups
Anthony Martial has been ruled out for Man Utd but Christian Eriksen could return to face his former club after missing the past two games. Cristiano Ronaldo may return to the bench after failing to score in his last two starts, while Harry Maguire, Donny van de Beek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka remain out.
Richarlison is out after suffering a calf injury in the 2-0 win over Everton, but the Brazilian should still make the World Cup as the injury was not as serious as first feared. However, with Dejan Kulusevski a doubt, Conte could be faced with a decision over whether to start an extra midfielder in Yves Bissoua following his impact against Everton, or hand a rare start to Lucas Moura. Emerson Royal, Clement Leglet and Ryan Sessegnon could return.
Predicted line-ups
Manchester United: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Fred; Antony, Fernandes, Sancho; Rashford
Tottenham: Lloris; Romero, Dier, Lenglet; Emerson, Hojbjerg, Bissouma, Bentancur, Sessegnon; Son, Kane
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