Manchester United defeated Tottenham 2-0 this morning to pull within a point of the top four in the Premier League, putting on perhaps its finest complete performance under Erik ten Hag.
Hugo Lloris made a series of outstanding saves to keep the score low throughout the game, but goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes in the second half sealed the victory.
United is currently one point behind Chelsea in fourth place and four points behind Tottenham, who have played one more game.
Cristiano Ronaldo threatened to steal the show as he left for the locker room before the final whistle, despite the crowd’s jubilant response to victory.
The Portuguese star was an ineffective replacement as United performed well without him.
Ten Hag is becoming more and more noticeable at Old Trafford, where he has already achieved notable victories this year over Liverpool and Premier League-leading Arsenal.
And Spurs was the most notable player to lose in front of United’s home supporters, who frequently got up from their seats in response to some of the team’s slickest play under the new Dutch manager.
If not for Lloris, who made a number of outstanding saves, United would have had a sizable lead by halftime.
But he was finally beaten by Fred and Fernandes after the break after United’s dominance paid off.
After just six minutes, Lloris nearly gave United the lead when he mishandled Antony’s long-range shot.
Prior to halftime, he recovered to make saves to deny Marcus Rashford, Fernandes, and Luke Shaw, while Antony had another attempt almost miss 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 witnessed his squad struggle to capitalise on scoring opportunities in recent weeks, most recently in Sunday’s scoreless draw with Newcastle.
But even if it depended on a little luck, United took the lead at the opening of the second half when Fred’s effort from outside the area in the 47th was deflected past Lloris by the outstretched leg of Ben Davies.
As impressive as United’s performance was, Tottenham provided little in return.
As his players struggled to develop attacks and were constantly forced into mistakes, Antonio Conte’s team appeared incapable to spark into action.
United punished the guests with a quick break to make it 2-0 after 69 minutes when Tottenham briefly appeared to be a threat.
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.
Lloris denied additional opportunities for Fernandes and Rashford as United looked for more.
Fernandes completes a 2-0 victory for Manchester United over Tottenham.
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