Troubled Manchester United Hosts Aimless Tottenham
Manchester United suffered another setback that increased pressure on their Dutch manager Erik ten Hag, as they drew 1-1 at home against Dutch side Twente in the opening round of the newly formatted Europa League.
This stumble comes ahead of a series of challenging matches for United, who will face Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday, followed by Porto in their second of eight group matches in the continental competition under the new system, and then Aston Villa in the Premier League.
United has shown no improvement from last season’s “disastrous” performance, currently sitting outside the top ten in the Premier League with only seven points from a possible 15.
Ten Hag has managed to retain his position, with difficulty, due to winning the FA Cup against Manchester City, despite overseeing the club’s worst finish in Premier League history, finishing last season in eighth place.
The club has spent a fortune in the summer transfer market, but the results so far have been unsatisfactory and below expectations.
The initial optimism from their 3-0 victory over Southampton and a dominant win against lower-league Barnsley in the English League Cup has waned following a goalless draw against Crystal Palace in the previous league round and a disappointing result against Twente, where they settled for just one point. Ironically, Ten Hag began his career as a central defender at Twente, having worn their jersey at three different stages before retiring in 2002. He subsequently launched his coaching career with youth teams, took on the role of assistant coach until 2009, and eventually became the head coach at Go Ahead Eagles in 2012.
The situation doesn’t look any better for Tottenham, despite the fantastic start the London team had last season under Australian coach Ange Postecoglou. However, the London side will be lifted by their victory over Brentford last week after two consecutive league defeats against Newcastle United and Arsenal.
Here are some important indicators about the two teams that might help you predict the winner:
• Manchester United have won 24 Premier League home games against Tottenham – only Arsenal have beaten an opponent more often at home in the competition’s history (25 vs Everton).
• After a run of four straight Premier League defeats against Manchester United between 2021 and 2022, Tottenham are now unbeaten in their last three against them in the league (W1 D2).
• Manchester United have lost seven of their last 19 Premier League home games (W9 D3)
• Since the start of last season, only Manchester City (31) have gained more points from losing positions in the Premier League than Tottenham (28), with Spurs coming from behind to beat Brentford 3-1 last time out.
• Manchester United have kept four clean sheets in their last six Premier League games, which is more than they had in their previous 24 combined (3). However, they’ve lost both games in which they’ve conceded during this run (W3 D1).
• Tottenham’s Son Heung-Min has created more chances from open play than any other player in the Premier League this season (13). He’s also had a hand in five goals in his last seven league appearances against Manchester United, scoring four and assisting one.
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