Brilliant display
De Gea’s saves help Man United beat Tottenham in EPL
LONDON: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said David de Gea was making a case to be considered Manchester United’s greatest-ever goalkeeper after he produced a masterclass on Sunday to protect his side’s 1-0 lead against Tottenham. The match at Wembley pitted two of the bookmakers’ favourites to permanently replace Jose Mourinho against one another but it was the interim United boss who came out on top against Mauricio Pochettino. Marcus Rashford scored the only goal in the 44th minute of a thrilling encounter and Paul Pogba impressed but the performance of the Spanish goalkeeper will live long in the memory. He made 11 saves — the most he has made in a top-flight league match without conceding a goal — leaving Spurs players holding their heads in disbelief on multiple occasions. Solskjaer hailed De Gea as “the best goalkeeper in the world” but also praised his team’s defensive resilience and team spirit. “We’ve had some great goalkeepers at this club and I think he’s challenging both Edwin [van der Sar] and Peter [Schmeichel] for the number one spot historically,” he said. “The win here was massive, the team spirit was massive, the belief and the joy in the dressing room absolutely fantastic,” added the Norwegian, who has equalled Matt Busby’s record of winning his first five league games in charge of United. De Gea said the “real Manchester United” had been on show at Wembley. The 28-year-old Spaniard played down his contribution to the victory, that saw them draw level on points with fifth-placed Arsenal, and instead praised the “happiness” Solskjaer has brought to the dressing room. “We won the game against a top team, we controlled the first half but in the second half they had chances,” De Gea told Sky Sports. “I was feeling very well with the first two saves, it was a great game. I don’t even remember some of the saves so I can’t pick a best. “The manager brought some happiness, the players are playing well and the team is very strong now. “This is the real Manchester United.” Rashford was in no doubt about how much De Gea had done against a Tottenham side who remained nine points adrift of league leaders Liverpool. “It’s a good responsibility to be the main striker but everyone has chipped in,” said Rashford. “It was the keeper [who won us the game] today.” United were eight points behind Arsenal when Solskjaer became their caretaker manager on Dec 19 but are now level on points with the fifthplaced Gunners as they hunt down a Champions League qualification spot. But the result is a devastating blow for Tottenham, who again came up short when the pressure was on and remain nine points adrift of Premier League leaders Liverpool. Pochettino praised his side despite their defeat. “Tottenham did everything to win the game,” he said. “Maybe we dominated and we created a lot of chances. It was an amazing second half, I am so pleased. “Sometimes you win a game and you are disappointed, like when we won 3-0 at Old Trafford. They were better than us that day. Today the result should be different and I am happy.”