Well, Tottenham Hotspur didn’t lose and they also scored a goal. Things are positive, right? Perhaps.
Having entered the international break bottom of the Premier League, they have at least lifted themselves to 18th before Coventry play on Monday evening.
While the result didn’t go in their favour, this was arguably one of the finest performances of the Roberto De Zerbi era. On another day, they would have walked away from Old Trafford as handsome winners.
The biggest winners after Spurs vs Man Utd
One of the biggest issues this season has not been defensively as it has been under previous managers. In actual fact, it’s the forward line that’s caused a problem.
Prior to their 3-2 defeat to Aston Villa before the international break, Spurs had not scored in four consecutive league matches. It was drab and abject, particularly for a side that had just spent over £300m in the transfer market.
Alas, they do look like a team that’s improving. In Manchester on Saturday night, the Lilywhites should have been home and hosed long before Rodrigo Bentancur’s sending off.
In the first half, they had seven shots to the one of Man United. They created an xG of 0.96. For those of you who don’t quite understand what that means, Spurs should have scored.
Alas, they only forced Senne Lammens into one save in the opening 45 minutes. It spoke volumes about the quality of finishing. However, Spurs are getting there. With Mohammed Kudus and Savio on either flank, they looked more creative, more likely to make something happen.
Between them, Kudus and Savio were two of the biggest winners out of Saturday’s clash. Sure, they lacked end product, but supporters would no doubt have been pleased by a bit of vibrancy in that area of the pitch.
Elsewhere, this was arguably Sandro Tonali’s finest performance since arriving for £100m in the summer. As with Savio, he has taken a while to get up to speed, but he ultimately provided the assist for Dominic Solanke’s late equaliser.
The biggest losers after Spurs vs Man Utd
Yes, this performance was better from Tottenham. The way they rallied with ten men was admirable. This was certainly not a Spursy display.
But, it did threaten to be. Bentancur had barely kicked a ball before he locked heads with Luke Shaw and was sent off.
It was a massive tension point. Bentancur has actually performed well this term. The midfielder has certainly been more consistent than £100m Tonali.
However, this was a moment of madness, one that almost ensured Spurs sat bottom of the Premier League again.
Yet, he was not the only underperformer in the north west this weekend. Solanke may well have scored the equaliser, a precious equaliser, but the captain on the day was found wanting in front of goal too many times.
His level of finishing was extremely poor. The striker had four shots and registered an xG of 0.98. Yet, he missed two big chances, including one in the first half where he took too long to get the ball out of his feet and was then smothered by Senne Lammens.
Regardless of whether De Zerbi makes him captain again, the centre-forward has to improve. As does someone in the backline.
Why the new Eric Dier must be dropped
Eric Dier, eh? Whatever happened to him? Well, now at Monaco, the former England international has found a home away from Tottenham.
In north London, it is safe to say he was a marmite character. Remember when he jumped into the crowd to confront a supporter? Wild times indeed.
On the pitch, Dier was inconsistent. Defensively, he was not good enough. He made individual mistakes and, despite the appeal of his versatility, he never truly looked at home in defence. In a back three, he was fine. In a back two, he was not.
On the ball, Dier is one of the most composed England have had. He’s the definition of a ball-playing defender. Even at Monaco now, the 32-year-old is among the best in Ligue 1.
|
Eric Dier’s Spurs career |
|
|---|---|
|
Signed for |
£4m |
|
Games |
365 |
|
Goals |
13 |
|
Assists |
12 |
|
Yellow cards |
53 |
|
Minutes played |
30,131 |
No player in the squad has completed more passes per 90 minutes (67.7), and only one player has completed more long balls per 90 (3.8). He’s also registered the most defensive contributions of any player in the squad with 9.3 per 90.
As it happens, he’s very Jan Paul van Hecke-esque.
The centre-back signed from Brighton in a £52m move over the summer but doubts are beginning to emerge regarding whether this was the right call. After all, a month or so later Brighton signed Luka Vuskovic – arguably the better centre-back – to the tune of £50m. The Seagulls definitely got the better end of the deal here.
For what it’s worth, Van Hecke has not had a poor start to his Spurs career but he has cost £7m per game so far and not exactly set the world alight. Like Dier, he’s calm and composed on the ball. He trails by 0.1 to fellow countryman Micky van de Ven when it comes to accurate passes per 90. The former Brighton defender ranks second in the Spurs side for that stat, making 70.8 per 90.
He’s made more line-breaking passes per 90 minutes than anyone at the club (19.3) and he’s completing 3.5 long balls per 90 in the Premier League.
However, against Man United on Saturday, in a similar way to Dier, he was not good enough defensively. He was nutmegged early in the game by Bryan Mbeumo, which rather set the tone for the day, particularly as the Dutchman ended up giving that same player too much room to turn and score the opening goal.
At times, he looked like he was running in quicksand. Compared to Van de Ven, he’s certainly more sluggish.
So, when Tottenham take on Coventry next week, De Zerbi should explore a centre-back pairing of Marcos Senesi and Van de Ven. The latter was not fit enough to start last weekend but he will be by the time they face the Sky Blues.