Manchester United are not to the greatest of starts to the season, but on Monday night they will have a chance to make things right, partially at least. They will be hosting Tottenham Hotspur in the match of the round, as Jose Mourinho’s team needs to bounce back after a terrible outing against Brighton.
Tottenham, on the other hand, have started impeccably, winning both of their matches. Spurs first won at St James’ Park 2-1, before beating Fulham 3-1 at Wembley. Such a start is a very good thing for Mauricio Pochettino, after all the negative media coverage after a completely quite transfer window and the delay of the new stadium’s opening.
Shaky Start In Newcastle
However, Spurs might have all six points to their name, but the match against Newcastle was far from ideal. Tottenham started well and scored early through Vertonghen, but then conceded easily just minutes later. Though Dele Alli did score to make it 2-1, Newcastle were a far better side in second half.
Tottenham looked shaky in all departments. Kane had no service and central midfielders were sloppy in possession. Newcastle even had decent chances of making it 2-2, but Spurs managed to see the match through. It could be a possibility to see this type of Spurs at Old Trafford. Last season they seemed a bit flustered, losing 1-0 in a match where they created just one chance.
Brushing Fulham Aside
The second match of the season was much better from Spurs. Fulham are still getting used to Premier League football and after signing big number of players, they need time to settle in. Tottenham got the most out of such situation. They started in their typical 4-2-3-1 once again, but this time with both Alderweireld and Vertonghen as centre-backs.
Lucas Moura started on left wing and the Brazilian seems to be settling in nicely after joining in January. He scored to put them had, only for Aleksandar Mitrovic to equalize after Fulham made 27 consecutive passes with all 11 players involved in the move. Fulham’s move was very impressive and of high quality, but right now it is hard seeing United produce such a team attack. Spurs, however, ended things with two swift goals through Trippier and Kane.
Kane’s Curse Is Gone
One important development for Tottenham this season has been the news of Harry Kane scoring in August. This was his first goal ever in the month of August and the striker will be feeling ready to face Manchester United. Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelöf will need to improve heavily if they are to stop the England captain.
It is not that this ‘curse’ is too big of a deal, but Spurs will be feeling good ahead of this match. They are tightly knit bunch and have not made any changes this summer. Even though that might be a negative thing in long-term, as the squad has not been refreshed at least a little bit, but this early in the season it could prove decisive.
United are still looking to find themselves, with Fred settling in and Matic and Valencia coming back from injuries. Spurs, on the other hand, already are nearing their high-level performances.
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