Premier League preview: Manchester United v Tottenham
Today’s news that Sir Alex Ferguson has no intention to call time on his managerial career and start collecting his pension is just about the best possible announcement that Manchester United could have received ahead of their final three matches of the season.
It had been a difficult April for the Red Devils before last Saturday, where an injury-time winner from Paul Scholes at the City of Manchester Stadium changed the whole complexion of the title race. Before that, Ferguson’s men had endured a dismal fortnight after being knocked out of the Champions League, beaten by title-rivals Chelsea and held at Ewood Park by Blackburn.
It was then Tottenham’s superb performance against Chelsea, hours after United beat City, which breathed new life into the title run-in; and has given the Old Trafford outfit renewed hope of landing their fourth consecutive Premier League title.
To do so, though, it’s largely presumed that United will have to win their remaining three matches and hope that Chelsea slip-up in at least one of theirs. The first challenge for them is against the league’s in-form team, who have already played a major role in the title race this month, Spurs.
A victory against rivals Arsenal – their first in the league for 11 years – and then another quite brilliant 2-1 win over high-flying Chelsea three days later propelled Harry Redknapp’s men into that elusive fourth spot. They’ve been there before, but whether or not they can end the season inside the final Champions League place will be the definitive test of Tottenham’s resolve.
For the north-Londoners, winning at Old Trafford is akin to running the London Marathon backwards and finishing first. It simply does not happen. If an away win on Saturday afternoon was to occur it would be a bigger achievement than their win against Arsenal. A bigger achievement than their victory against Chelsea, even. Combine the two and you’re now getting warmer to the triumph this result would be.
It’s now 21 long years since Terry Venables took his Spurs side to the north-west and recorded a 1-0 victory. The former England manager can now be seen on a television advert on behalf of The Sun, blasting out a rendition of Elvis Presley’s If I Can dream. He could easily be referring to Tottenham’s challenge, rather than England’s bid to win the 2010 World Cup. OK, so there is at least one thing in football which happens even less often than Tottenham winning at Old Trafford.
As the old English saying goes, good things come in threes. For Spurs, a hat-trick of victories against Arsenal, Chelsea and then Manchester United couldn’t be described as merely “good”. At White Hart Lane, the word “good” is reserved for when Ledley King is actually fit to play a match, or when Jermaine Jenas is left out of the starting XI.
This would be spectacular.
If any club can halt Tottenham firmly in their tracks, though, it is Ferguson’s men. Although the Stretford End faithful would relish seeing Spurs pip City to fourth spot, there are more pressing matters at hand.
An early victory over Tottenham would mean United leapfrog Chelsea into top spot for the first time since last month. Judging by last weekend, Carlo Ancelotti’s side might not play their best football under pressure, and they will have to wait more than 24 hours before they play their weekend fixture against resilient Stoke City.
At 68, Ferguson has been there and seen it all before. He knows exactly how his team must play this weekend to keep themselves in the hunt for the league title. But at 63, Redknapp is from the same school of management, and also has all the t-shirts.
There’s a mutual respect between the two managers off the pitch, but their relationship could be strained this weekend if this potentially-enthralling encounter lives up to the billing.
Prediction: Manchester United 3 Tottenham 1
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