Two Premier League heavyweights that are expected to be fighting at the top of the table find themselves sloughing in the second half as Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United are only separated by one position and two points after 24 games, where the Lilywhites sit in 14th place with 27 points, while the Manchester Reds occupy 13th with 29 points. You’d at least expect them to be competing for the European spots, if not the Champions League, but here we are, in what has been a struggling season for both clubs.
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Diff | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Manchester United | 24 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 28 | 34 | -6 | 29 |
| 14 | Tottenham | 24 | 8 | 3 | 13 | 48 | 37 | 11 | 27 |
But it has been far distant approaches at both the clubs. Looking to do something about the bad performances at Old Trafford, they replaced Erik ten Hag with Ruben Amorim, and while this has brought in some patience as they seek to rebuild at M16. Meanwhile, Daniel Levy has surprisingly remained committed to Ange Postecoglou despite a certain part of the fan base wanting the Australian head coach gone.
Tottenham at home have been a problem in PL
And now, in order to claim at least some bragging rights and save faces, both clubs will rub shoulders at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Lilywhites have a questionable home record going into the game with Spurs enduring a seven-game winless streak at home in the English top tier, losing five of those games. And while they have dominated the ball in the majority of those outings, the struggles at the back have cost them duly. And this is something that Amorim would be looking to take advantage of this Sunday with the Portuguese coach playing some compact and counter-attacking football with his United side.
Gary Neville and Roy Keane give their predictions for Spurs vs United
And going into the game, United players turned pundits Gary Neville and Roy Keane have been speaking about the headline fixture of the weekend. Unsurprisingly, both of them went on to predict a win for the visitors.
Speaking on the ‘Stick to Football’ podcast, Neville confidently insisted that United would win while Keane went on to agree with Neville before they spoke about their score predictions. Neville started the conversation:
“I think United wins; I think United wins.”
Keane added, “I think United—I’m going to go 3-1 United.”
Neville replied, “2-1 United.”
Jill Scott questioned Keane: “Really? Are United going to score three goals away from home?”
Keane replies, “Yes, they will.”
While Tottenham have a bad defensive run, they have always been prepared for a big game, and Ange’s side will surely be looking to prove themselves this weekend as Postecoglou looks for something to motivate his team going into the final run of the campaign.
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If United were facing a vulnerable defence, their optimism might hold more weight, but their ability to control games and create consistent scoring chances has been questionable. Neville’s more conservative 2-1 prediction seems like a more realistic take, but even that depends on which version of United shows up on the day. Some bias is to be expected given the duo’s allegiance to Manchester United and the onus is on Postecoglou and Co to silence them this weekend.
What are your predictions for Tottenham vs. United? Let us know in the comments below.
