Premier League preview: Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur
For younger viewers of Match of the Day, it might be difficult to imagine that Gary Lineker was once a lethal striker, equipped with a cold, deadly eye for goal.
The smooth-talking BBC One show host will introduce the highlights of his former club Tottenham in action against Manchester United this Saturday night, but is still a name very much associated with this fixture.
That’s because 21-years ago, Lineker struck the only goal of the game to secure Spurs a rare victory at the home of the Red Devils – a feat the north Londoners have been unable to replicate since.
Put quite frankly, Tottenham’s record against United at Old Trafford has been utterly dismal in recent decades, while their form against any of the “top four” sides away from White Hart Lane has been equally as atrocious. In the last 17 years, Spurs have failed to win at either Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge, Anfield or Highbury/Emirates Stadium.
But after they turned a significant corner last season by qualifying for the Champions League for the first time, are their fortunes against the Premier League’s big boys about to change?
Not if Sir Alex Ferguson has anything to do with it. The United boss has endured a rollercoaster ride of a month, which he hopes will end perfectly with a crucial home victory against Harry Redknapp’s side this Saturday.
Ferguson emerged from the Wayne Rooney saga with his credibility and reputation firmly intact, and played a key role in persuading the striker to sign a new five-year deal with the club last week. At Friday’s pre-match press conference the 68-year-old revealed Rooney will be out for at least another few weeks as he recovers from an ankle injury, but based on the recent form of his other forwards, he needn’t worry.
Javier Hernández is quickly building himself a strong profile on English shores with six goals to his name already. The 22-year-old Mexico international was the hero at the Britannia Stadium last weekend, scoring both goals against Stoke City, and had the United faithful in raptures again on Tuesday night after coming on against Wolves and netting a superb winning goal to put his team through to the Carling Cup quarter-finals.
And then there’s Dimitar Berbatov, who has taken a backseat to “Chicharito” of late, but showed that he’s a big-game player with that remarkable hat-trick against Liverpool in September. The Bulgarian will go head-to-head with his former teammates this weekend, keen to get back to goalscoring ways at their expense.
As the only unbeaten side left in the Premier League, there’s little doubt that United are still a formidable force, despite surrendering the league title to Chelsea last season. Currently five points behind Carlo Ancelotti’s side, picking up maximum points in every game has become increasingly imperative.
However, no side in the Premier League underestimates Tottenham these days. Under Redknapp’s leadership Spurs have rediscovered their attacking instincts and now boast a squad capable of winning every match they enter.
In Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart, the Spurs boss has two in-form players, who have been nothing short of world-class lately. However, Redknapp revealed that he may rest Bale this weekend, with Inter Milan due at White Hart Lane on Tuesday night.
This always threatened to be the dilemma which would jeopardise Tottenham from retaining their place inside the top four. If Wolves’ winger Matthew Jarvis was able to terrorise the Manchester United defence from the left-flank in mid-week, then what could Bale – the man who scored a hat-trick at the San Siro earlier this month – do against the likes of Rafael and co?
The timing of Tottenham’s most important European clash for years could hardly have been better for Ferguson and his side. And as a result, it’s they who will once again be firm favourites to pick up all three points, and continue Spurs’ dire recent record at the Theatre of Dreams.
Prediction: Manchester United 2 Tottenham 1
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