Tottenham Hotspur’s Jermain Defoe (right) gets away from Norwich City’s Jonny Howson
Manchester United and Tottenham set up another blockbuster clash in the English Premier League this Saturday. United will be flying high with their win at Anfield after failing to win there in five previous attempts, while Andre Villas-Boas’ Spurs are coming off their first two wins of the season.
After a shocking opening weekend defeat at Everton, The Red Devils have recorded four straight victories, leaving them just a point behind leaders Chelsea and three in front of title-holders Manchester City. Together with Fulham they have scored the most goals in the league, 12. They haven’t been at their best but have still managed to scrape wins, underlining their capacity to succeed without hitting top gear. United were second best to their old foes until Jonjo Shelvey was harshly sent-off before half-time after him and Jonny Evans lunged for a 50-50 ball. Still Liverpool managed to take the lead just after half-time with a goal from Steven Gerrard. Rafael then demonstrated why United should never be underestimated regardless of their performance level by curling sublimely into the top left corner to level the scoring five minutes after Gerrard had struck. The Red Devils slowly started controlling the match with the presence of Paul Scholes, who replaced a non-existent Nani at half-time. Antonio Valencia then went down dubiously in the box and United were gifted a penalty which Robin van Persie made no mistake with in what was the eventual winner. Wayne Rooney will return since suffering a gashed thigh in their 3-2 win against Fulham last month and will hopefully inject some much needed hunger to United’s attack. Nemanja Vidic looks certain to replace Jonny Evans in the starting line-up while Darren Fletcher could be handed his first league appearance in 10 months as he continues his recovery from a chronic bowel condition. The Scottish midfielder came off the bench against Galatasaray in the Champions League.
Tottenham enjoyed their first home win of the season with a 2-1 victory over a spirited QPR side during a hugely entertaining game at White Hart Lane last weekend. Four months ago, Jermain Defoe could not force his way into Tottenham’s starting XI. Today, he is the man Andre Villas-Boas cannot do without. Defoe has scored four times in six matches and it was his goal against QPR which gave AVB his first home victory as Tottenham manager, and he is likely to keep Emmanuel Adebayor on the bench. Brad Friedel is another player thriving on the competition within the squad with French International Hugo Lloris watching from the sidelines. The veteran goalkeeper was named man of the match against QPR. Spurs started their campaign with a 2-1 loss at Newcastle but are now unbeaten in four games and coming off two straight victories which have brought them up the table to eighth spot. The loss of Luka Modric looks to have passed as Clint Dempsey, Moussa Dembele and Gylfi Sigurdsson continue to fight for a starting place in the team.
Manchester United have dominated recent encounters against Tottenham and are on an unbelievable 26 match unbeaten streak against the London side. However, United have rode their luck this season and will need a much improved performance against Spurs, who have played quite decently on the road so far. Tottenham are tipped to continue their winning streak and finally end a long winless streak against United.
