FAREWELL VICTOR-Y
Wanyama and Spurs sign off at White Hart Lane
IT was an emotional farewell to a glorious past with another wonderful glimpse of the future.
Tottenham said goodbye to White Hart Lane with a day to remember, an impressive victory and even Manchester United did their best to be obliging party guests.
Great names from the past were trotted out, glory days replayed on the giant screen and the fans conjured a really special atmosphere in one of the last remaining old-school grounds.
A big part of that is that Spurs are genuinely excited about the future under boss Mauricio Pochettino while, in contrast, United look a pale shadow of their glorious past.
Ex-Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama scored a quickfire opener and Harry Kane doubled Spurs’ lead just after half-time.
Wayne Rooney restored some pride for United but the scoreline flattered the visitors who looked as if they were going through the motions.
Pochettino said: “It was a very good performance at White Hart Lane, the last one. And now we focus on the last two games.
“It’s fantastic we’ve achieved second position in the league.
“We’re disappointed not to win the title but at the same time to be unbeaten at White Hart Lane in the last season here is something to be happy with.
“We’re very proud of the season. Yes, we will miss White Hart Lane but we have to move on.”
They are only moving a few yards away, the new stadium is looming large in the background but it does feel like an exciting new chapter under Pochettino.
Right from the start, Spurs were far better than the Red Devils. They had more pace, movement and power.
United boss Jose Mourinho tasked youngster Axel Tuanzebe to man-mark Christian Eriksen, but that backfired as the 19-year-old could not keep up with the playmaker.
It was Eriksen’s short corner which led to the sixth-minute opener, his pass found Ben Davies who whipped in a cross and Wanyama rose to head powerfully home. The Kenyan star ran straight over to the bench to celebrate with Poch and his coaching staff as they are always teasing him he needs to score more.
Anthony Martial carried a bit of a threat as United’s lone forward, curling a shot just wide while Kane headed against the crossbar. Keeper David de Gea also made a fabulous stop to deny Dele Alli’s blockbuster.
It was very one-sided. The home team brought Chas and Dave on to the pitch at half-time and the Cockney duo sang their old Spurs FA Cup Final songs.
One joker on Twitter suggested they might do a better job in United’s defence than Phil Jones and Chris Smalling.
Sure enough, United’s fragile looking backline buckled again after 49 minutes.
Eriksen delivered a brilliant free-kick to the near post and Kane beat Smalling to the ball and fired home. Tottenham were completely dominant but failed to take another of their countless chances and it nearly came back to haunt them.
United somehow got themselves back into the game after 71 minutes. Martial beat Kieran Trippier and delivered a low cross which Rooney bundled into the net.
It was his 253rd goal and stretches his record as the club’s leading scorer.
Afterwards Mourinho insisted he had no regrets about making eight changes even though defeat meant United can’t now finish in the top four. Their only route to the Champions League is beating Ajax in the Europa League Final.
Mourinho said: “When people say ‘we gambled’, we didn’t gamble, we didn’t choose Europa League. We had to do it.
“I don’t know other clubs, I don’t know the way they think. For us it’s more important to win titles than to finish top four.
“We know if we lose the final we don’t play in the Champions League, we know that.
“But we fight for titles and other clubs in the top four would like to be in our position.”