SIMON MULLOCK BIG-MATCH VERDICT FROM OLD TRAFFORD
MAURICIO POCHETTINO accused Pep Guardiola of showing a lack of respect when he dubbed Tottenham ‘the Harry Kane team’ – but the England striker really is the one man he can’t do without.
This top-of-the-table clash was always going to be decided by small margins – but with the game in the balance, and the points tantalisingly there for the taking, it was Jose Mourinho who had what it took to snatch them
all thanks to Anthony Martial’s late strike.
There had been a smattering of jeers when Mourinho decided to replace Marcus Rashford with Martial for the last 20 minutes, but in the end, it proved to be a masterstroke.
Mourinho put his finger to his lips at the final whistle – telling those United fans who had questioned his wisdom that silence can sometimes be golden.
Yes, the winning goal may have been Wimbledon-lite – but it was also an illustration of what you can do when you have a £60million forward to summon from the bench.
Martial showed power, pace and precision, making the most of Romelu Lukaku’s flick, and hesitation between Jan Vertonghen and Eric Dier, to beat Hugo Lloris with a leftfoot finish that brought an Old Trafford full-house down.
Pochettino is a talented manager, but he hasn’t yet mastered the art of turning water into wine.
One day, he might get the chance to taste the fruits on offer when you manage United. But for now he’ll be praying that the hamstring strain that forced him to leave Kane back home in London heals quickly.
With Kane missing, Pochettino had little option but to ask Son Heung-Min to fill the Tottenham talisman’s boots. The South Korean spent an hour running into the roadblocks put up by Mourinho’s three-man defence.
When he was replaced by Fernando Llorente, the Spaniard displayed all the mobility of a traffic cone.
Spurs’ only chance came just before Martial’s winner. Christian Eriksen’s exquisite clip forward for once found United wanting, but Dele Alli could only fire wide. It was the kind of opportunity Kane dreams about in his sweetest slumber.
Momentum is a wonderful thing – and the truth is that the Reds have stalled since Mourinho applied the brakes at Anfield a fortnight ago.
A draw against Liverpool is usually acceptable, but not when you follow it up by losing at Huddersfield.
Mourinho was his usual pragmatic self, despite no Kane, employing a thee-man defence, locking the back door with midfield stalwarts Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera. But the formation gave him the freedom to link Lukaku with Rashford, then with Martial.
There were gasps of disbelief when Mourinho replaced Rashford, the teenager had looked the most likely player to produce a winner. But when Alli failed to capitalise on United’s only lapse, it was the home side that cranked up the tempo.
David De Gea launched a free-kick forward from inside his own penalty area and Lukaku’s leap above Toby Alderweireld enabled him to flick on.
Martial had read the script perfectly and when Dier failed to track the Frenchman’s dart, he ghosted in behind Vertonghen to score.
Sir Alex Ferguson in 1999 famously sent his United team out to face Spurs with the simple reminder “lads, it’s Tottenham”. They might not be the soft touch they once were, but Pochettino will know what he meant.
MATCH REPORT:
SEE PULL-OUT p8-9