Key events
Nick Ames has filed his match report from the Tottenham Stadium, so that’s my cue to get some fresh air while the sun is still shining in North London. Thanks for your company and correspondence. Congratulations to Ruben Amorim on not losing to Spurs for the first time in four attempts, congratulations to Thomas Frank on winning the battle of the benches and congratulations to the crowd on giving us every mood in the book.
Here comes Thomas Frank, with his excellent hair. “A very big positive from this game,” he says, “is the second half, where we stick to the game plan, stick to the structure, kept believing. That’s huge when we know about the Chelsea game, the home record and all that. And of course you’re disappointed when you don’t win, 11 against ten, but that’s just football, how many times have we seen it?”
Bryan Mbeumo moves up this list. Mind you, so do a lot of people and they’re all just also-rans next to Erling Haaland.
“Fully deserved draw for United,” says Joshua Keeling. “I’d have been so annoyed if we lost – we deserved to win. May have embarrassed myself in a pub in Whitby with my celebrations for De Ligt’s equaliser…”
A minute later, he sends a PS. “Also, just to add – great character from United. A late equaliser away from home for the second week in a row, and this time with ten men. They are clearly on the right track with Amorim.”
At the risk of killing the mood in Whitby, it’s also the second week in a row that they’ve gone from 1-0 up to 2-1 down.
Way back in the 72nd minute, when they were still ahead, I asked if anyone was old enough to remember when it was perfectly normal for United to be second. “Unfortunately,” says Mark Armstrong, “I’m old enough to remember United in the Second Division!”
There hasn’t been a moment to look at an email till now, but the first one I open is a good one. “This is a game,” says Matthew Carpenter-Arevalo, “where everything I am mumbling to myself about what Frank is getting wrong turns out to be wrong. Why start Richie? Why throw on Tel? I truly know nothing.”
As it stands
Both teams were second at different stages of this game. Now neither of them are, though Spurs squeeze up to third, on goal difference ahead of four other teams – including United, who are seventh. Both can expect to slip a bit as the other games unfold.
Well, that was a slow-burner. In the first half-hour, neither side had a shot on target. Then Bryan Mbeumo scored with a header and Spurs were booed off for half-time. They responded to the crowd, suddenly playing much better, benefiting from some shrewd substitutions and eventually scoring twice in eight minutes through Mathys Tel and Richarlison. United, down to ten men after Benjamin Sesko limped off, found a late equaliser for the second away game running.
FULL TIME! Spurs 2-2 Man United
Honours even!
90+6 min It wasn’t Yoro doing Maguire’s job, it was Matthijs de Ligt. United had a corner which reached him at the far post, and he calmly planted his header in back of the net.
GOAL! Spurs 2-2 Man United (De Ligt 90+5)
They’re not gloating now!
90+5 min Leny Yoro is now playing centre-forward – that’s Maguire’s job. The crowd have gone from oohing (when Van de Ven beat one man) to booing (when Spurs trailed at half-time) to gloating, loudly.
90+4 min As it stands, Spurs are second in the league.
90+2 min Richarlison may well have won the match! With the subtlest of flicks. A shot came curling in from the edge of the box and he saw that it needed a finishing touch.
GOAL! Spurs 2-1 Man United (Richarlison 90+1)
Lads, this is not Tottenham.
90 min There will be six more minutes, and it looks like being a siege.
89 min Chance for Tel! This time he fluffs his lines, scuffing a left-foot volley.
88 min Odobert breaks free down the left and whips in a good cross, which is headed clear, superbly, by Luke Shaw.
87 min Sesko is now hobbling off! So United are down to ten men.
86 min Great defending! Sesko, near the penalty spot, has to score – until Van de Ven pulls off a textbook tackle. He doesn’t just score wonder goals.
85 min In fact it was two subs. Odogie, overlapping on the left, sent in a low cross and Tel did three things right – a classy first touch, a show of strength to hold off his old Bayern team-mate De Ligt, and a crisp shot that perhaps took a deflection.
GOAL! Spurs 1-1 Man United (Tel 84)
A sub makes all the difference!
82 min United are playing on the counter now and playing better because it suits them. Mbeumo sends a lovely through ball, on the turn, to Dalot, who can’t do much with it.
78 min Amorim sees that sub and sends on one of his own – Diogo Dalot for Patrick Dorgu at left wing-back. That’s all five subs used for United, unlike last Saturday at Forest when Amorim was strangely passive.
78 min Thomas Frank makes another substitution, sending on Mathys Tel, taking off Xavi Simons and prompting loud boos from the home fans. Simons played well, so maybe he has a niggle.
74 min Meanwhile, in the WSL, the big game has finished in a draw, as Alessia Russo saved the day for Arsenal. Go here for elegant coverage of that game from Rob Smyth.
74 min Free kick to United on the left. Fernandes drills it in, but the ball bobbles kindly for Vicario.
74 min As it stands, Manchester United are second in the league (albeit with the next few teams yet to play). Are you old enough to remember when this was perfectly normal?
73 min Another glimmer of hope for Sesko as Mbeumo’s flick sends him through, but the flag is up.
72 min United subs, three of them! Mount for Cunha, Yoro for Maguire (who seems to have an injury) and most significantly Ugarte for Casemiro, who, as usual, departs with United ahead.
70 min Out of nowhere, Fernandes storms into the box, only to spray his shot towards Row Z.
69 min Benjamin Sesko has touched the ball! He executes a nice spin and picks up a through ball from Dorgu … but nothing comes of it.
69 min Spurs get into the United box again, but there’s some dogged defending and they can’t get a shot in.
67 min Spurs’ second sub is going to be Destiny Udogie, replacing Pedro Porro and presumably sending Djed Spence from left-back to right. United will be happy to see the back of Porro’s crosses.
65 min The VAR is checking for a penalty against Harry Maguire … but decides the handball was accidental.
64 min Lammens plays sweeper-keeper to clear. He’s been United’s best player in this half. They are looking scrappy, Spurs suddenly commanding.
62 min Disallowed goal! Johnson finds the net as usual against United as Richarlison’s plays a neat little through ball, but he was clearly offside.
60 min Sesko has come on, replacing Mazraoui, so Amad reverts to right wing-back. For the moment, Mbeumo stays at inside-left with Cunha shunting across to inside-right. It’s an attacking change, which is brave.
59 min Suddenly United have space and time in midfield. Fernandes chips a through ball to Mbeumo and Dorgu races past on the overlap, but his cross goes for a goal kick.
58 min United are threatening to throw it away as they did at Forest. Amorim’s solution is to abandon his strikerless shape and send on Sesko.
56 min Another fine save from Lammens! A free kick to Spurs, 40 yards out, leads to a smart shot from Palhinha, which Lammens does well to see, let alone parry.
54 min Save! Surs respond by applying some pressure at last, and a fine flick by Romero must surely go in – until Lammens somehow gets a hand to it. He’s been a big part of United’s improvement.
53 min The crowd are sounding restless now. According to Darren Fletcher – the commentator, not the United youth boss – there were some boos at half-time.
50 min There’s a lull as Casemiro goes down in pain after being clattered by Spence. He’s soon on his feet. United’s recent record with him on the field is strikingly good: if it wasn’t for Mbeumo’s blazing form, he would be their player of the season so far.
48 min A gorgeous ball from Fernandes sets Dorgu free down the left. He finds Cunha, whose low cross finds … nobody at all.
47 min Harry Maguire gets a great touch in as a better cross heads for Richarlison, now playing in the middle. The flag was up anyway.
46 min United kick off, but it’s Spurs who push forward as Simons becomes their latest player to overhit a cross.
Thomas Frank has seen enough of his front two. He takes Kolo Muani off and sends on Wilson Odobert.
HALF-TIME! Spurs 0-1 Man United
Spurs do get forward, but Porro’s chip-cross is overcooked. And so United still lead, something they have never done before in three meetings with Spurs under Ruben Amorim. The only shot on target so far, Bryan Mbeumo’s crisp header, is the difference between two well-matched sides.
45 min There will be just the one extra minute. Time for Spurs to register a shot on target?
44 min Kolo Muani, on the right, runs at Dorgu and almost leaves him on the floor, only to find Dorgu shoving the ball out for a corner.
42 min Bentancur is warming up for Spurs, which may be a sign that Thomas Frank can see his midfield not working. Casemiro has stood out for United, covering a lot of ground for a senior citizen and so often passing forwards.
38 min A caption just now showed that the two players seeing the least of the ball have been Richarlison and Kolo Muani. The team with no out-and-out striker on the field is beating the one with two of them.
37 min The goal reflects well on Amorim, who sprang a surprise by shifting Mbeumo to the left. It seemed as if he was breaking up a promising partnership with Amad, but no, it’s given United the lead.
35 min United get in the area again, twice, without finding a shot.
33 min As Spurs got a bit Spursy at the back, failing to clear, United strung together some touches in the box for the first time today. The first cross was a poor one from Cunha but the second, from Amad, was a peach. It went straight to the bald head of Mbeumo and he placed his header beautifully, in the corner.
